Palakkad: Days after a nine-year-old girl from Pallassana in Palakkad lost her arm following an alleged case of medical negligence, her family’s financial and emotional suffering continues to worsen. Despite public outrage and promises of inquiry, no significant relief has reached the family, who now face crushing poverty and uncertainty about their daughter’s future.
Vinodini, a fourth-grade student, underwent amputation at Kozhikode Medical College Hospital after a hand fracture reportedly went untreated in time at the Palakkad District Hospital. Her family maintains that doctors ignored repeated complaints of pain and swelling, resulting in the loss of circulation to her arm.
While the initial investigation cleared the medical staff of negligence, the family has rejected the report, calling it unfair and one-sided. Health Minister Veena George has ordered a fresh review, but the family says they are yet to receive any assistance for the mounting medical expenses.
At present, Vinodini lives with her grandparents in a tiny, tarpaulin-covered hut that barely withstands rain and wind. Her parents, both daily wage labourers, live in a rented home in Meenakshipuram and are struggling to pay off the loans taken for her treatment and travel expenses. With months of therapy and possible plastic surgery ahead, their financial burden is growing by the day.
Local political leaders, including Nenmmara MLA K. Babu, have assured the family that the issue will be brought to the Chief Minister’s attention. Youth Congress members and local residents have also called for government compensation, saying the system failed to protect a poor child from irreversible harm.
Despite the attention, the family says they feel abandoned. “We are not asking for sympathy we just want justice and help to continue our daughter’s treatment,” Vinodini’s mother said, standing beside their makeshift home.
As the investigation drags on, the family’s plea reflects a deeper truth: for Kerala’s poorest families, one medical failure can mean not just the loss of a limb, but the loss of hope itself.