Thiruvananthapuram: A specialist medical facility is facing a harrowing accusation of clinical negligence after a surgical sponge was allegedly left inside a woman’s abdomen during an operation.

Sheeba Pramod, a resident of Menamkulam, Kazhakkoottam, underwent an emergency appendectomy at the CSI Mission Hospital on December 3. While she was discharged nine days later, her recovery soon devolved into a three-month ordeal of "unbearable agony" and severe mental distress.

A three-month nightmare

Despite the initial surgery, Sheeba’s surgical wound failed to heal correctly. Plagued by persistent pain, she eventually sought a second opinion at another private hospital in Thiruvananthapuram. Diagnostic scans revealed a shocking cause for her complications: a foreign object—identified as a surgical cloth or gauze—had been stitched inside her abdominal cavity, causing a small perforation in the wound site.

Sheeba returned to the original hospital, where a second procedure was performed to remove the object. Distressing footage has since emerged, purportedly showing the moment the blood-stained cloth was extracted from the infected wound.

"Bizarre" denials from hospital authorities

The hospital’s response to the incident has been met with incredulity by the patient’s family. Senior staff and the operating surgeon reportedly claimed they were "unaware" of how the cloth entered her body. In a move described by the family as a deflection of guilt, the doctor suggested the object might have been introduced during Sheeba’s subsequent visits to other medical facilities for pain relief.

Also read: Shocking medical negligence: Scissors found in woman’s abdomen 5 years after surgery in Kerala

Legal action and ministerial appeal

Refusing to accept the hospital's explanation, Sheeba’s family has escalated the matter to the highest levels of state government. A formal complaint has been lodged with the Chief Minister’s office, demanding a high-level inquiry into the lapse.

“We want strict action against those responsible for three months of needless suffering,” Sheeba stated firmly. The family is now pursuing comprehensive legal proceedings against the hospital for medical malpractice.