07-07-2025
Names wrong in death certificates, kin petition Madurai Government Rajaji Hospital officials
MADURAI: The officials of Madurai Government Rajaji Hospital (GRH) have received around 720 petitions in the last five months from kin of dead patients seeking correction of 'name' in the death certificate, stated an official record.
Hakkim (55), a patient's kin, told TNIE, "My sister Bailuna was admitted to the GRH after she was found suffering from serious ailments since April 2025. During her treatment as her condition started getting worse, we found that her name was misspelt as 'Baiju' in the admission list. When I mentioned the wrong spelling to the local officials, they did not respond immediately. Later, after she passed away, her death certificate had the wrong spelling and did not match her Aadhaar details. This led to legal issues during property transfer and other instances."
Dr S Saravanan, GRH Resident Medical Officer (RMO), said, "During admission, many family members and friends end up misspelling the patient's name due to tension, and they do not carry an Aadhaar card at that time. Later, they tend to forget to recheck it because they get busy with the treatment. In case of death, the name of the deceased is sent to the admin department with the wrong spelling and they send it to the city corporations' Birth and Death Registration section which is located within the hospital premises."
