The inquiry committee, which probed the case of a patient receiving an injection in the wrong eye at the Regional Institute of Ophthalmology, Government Medical College, Thiruvananthapuram, has found that, besides the negligence, medical records were altered to cover up the grave error. Dr Sujeesh S S, Assistant Professor, was placed under suspension on June 3, 2025, following a complaint that a patient named Azoora Beevi, 59, under his treatment, was injected in the right eye while she was admitted for administration of an intravitreal injection in the left eye.
The inquiry committee appointed by the Principal of Medical College, which probed the case, quoted nursing staff and reported that the case sheet was altered to reflect a right eye injection instead of the originally recorded left eye. "All records maintained by the nursing staff list the left eye as the intended site. The complainant has also raised this issue. A scientific examination is required to determine who made the alterations and the circumstances surrounding the changes," the committee report showed.
In July 2025, the Director of Medical Education had communicated to the government that the Director of the Regional Institute of Ophthalmology (RIO) observed that there were discrepancies in the patient’s case sheet, which appeared to have been altered post-treatment. This was deemed a serious lapse on the part of Dr Sujeesh, and the Director recommended strict disciplinary action against him.
Vanchiyoor police have also registered a case following the incident, slapping charges pertaining to acts endangering human life. The patient records, along with the investigation committee's report, have been handed over to the Assistant Commissioner of Police, Thiruvananthapuram city, Shangumugham division.
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Meanwhile, Dr Sujeesh moved the Kerala Administrative Tribunal (KAT) challenging the suspension order, and the tribunal directed the government to pass appropriate orders. In his statement, Dr Sujeesh said that he had informed the patient before administering the injection in the right eye, and it was done with her consent. He cited medical autonomy for doing this, as informed consent was already taken for both eyes. He also said that he had noticed redness in the left eye. He further cited that the suspension order was abrupt and premature and was issued before any preliminary inquiry was conducted. He placed a request with the government to withdraw the suspension at the earliest and to exonerate him of what he termed unfounded allegations.
During the hearing, the Vice Principal, Govt Medical College, Thiruvananthapuram, has informed the government that if Dr Sujeesh's intention was genuine, he should have informed the bystander before giving the injection in the right eye. Moreover, she informed that on searching the case records, it was noticed that some alterations were made to correct the letter L as R.
The Health department has concluded that as per the information collected from other responsible officials who were present in the operation theatre, it was revealed that after completing all the procedures for the left eye injection, the doctor gave the injection in the right eye inadvertently. "When the co-staff brought this mistake to the doctor, he suddenly relocated the pad to the left eye. The patient then pointed out that the injection had been given to the right eye, questioning why the pad was being applied to the left eye. The doctor then applied to the pad to the right eye," the department cited.
The government has rejected the request to revoke the suspension, citing that serious lapses and medical negligence have been confirmed on the part of Dr Sujeesh. When asked about changes in the case sheet, Dr Sujeesh has replied that he was not aware of the alterations since all the entries in the case records are done by the PG students. The government did not buy this explanation and said that it was unacceptable since a surgeon is responsible for checking whether all entries in the case records are correct.
"Injecting the right eye instead of the left eye is a non-excusable case of medical negligence. Also, tampering of records to conceal his gross medical negligence is also reported. Hence, revoking suspension at this juncture will go against justice," an order issued by the Health department noted.