Singapore General Hospital neurosurgery head Dr. Jai Prashanth Rao is under police investigation for failing to report the January 2024 death of 75-year-old patient Madam Tan Suan Lin to the coroner following aborted brain tumour surgery involving 3,000 ml of blood loss. Dr. Rao mistakenly believed coroner reporting applied only to deaths within 24 hours of surgery and chose to issue a death certificate without an autopsy after the patient's family expressed reluctance.
Unreported patient death investigation
- ▪Clinical Assistant Professor Jai Prashanth Rao, head of neurosurgery at Singapore General Hospital and the National Neuroscience Institute, is under police investigation for failing to report a patient's death to the coroner.
- ▪A Health Sciences Authority forensic pathologist indicated that Madam Tan Suan Lin's possible cause of death was surgical bleeding complications, contrasting with the brain tumour cause listed on her death certificate.
- ▪A coroner's inquiry opened on October 14, 2026 into the death of 75-year-old Madam Tan Suan Lin, who died six days after undergoing brain tumour surgery performed by Dr. Jai Prashanth Rao.
- ▪An independent expert witness testified during the October 14, 2026 inquiry that Dr. Jai Prashanth Rao should have reported Madam Tan Suan Lin's death, but noted emotional burden can cloud surgeon judgment.
Brain tumour surgery complications
- ▪During a January 3, 2024 brain tumour operation on Madam Tan Suan Lin, complications including severe brain swelling and approximately 3L of blood loss forced Dr. Jai Prashanth Rao to abort the surgery.
- ▪Following her aborted surgery on January 3, 2024, Madam Tan Suan Lin was admitted to the intensive care unit at Singapore General Hospital, where her condition deteriorated until her death on January 9, 2024.
- ▪Dr. Jai Prashanth Rao testified that the brain swelling experienced by Madam Tan Suan Lin was unexpected and medically appeared to be a seizure, despite pre-operative anti-seizure medication.
Mistaken reporting requirements understanding
- ▪Dr. Jai Prashanth Rao instructed a junior doctor to specify a brain tumour as the cause of death for Madam Tan Suan Lin, which was logged in the electronic system without further review required.
- ▪Dr. Jai Prashanth Rao stated during coroner's inquiry testimony on October 14, 2026 that Madam Tan Suan Lin's death was the only patient mortality he experienced in 12 to 13 years.
- ▪Dr. Jai Prashanth Rao testified that he wrongly believed mandatory coroner reporting applied only to deaths occurring within 24 hours of surgery, leading him to assume reporting was at his discretion.
Family autopsy reluctance
- ▪Madam Tan Suan Lin's daughter repeatedly requested that her mother not undergo an autopsy following her death, citing a desire to maintain her mother's dignity in death.
- ▪Dr. Jai Prashanth Rao initially told Madam Tan Suan Lin's family that her case required coroner reporting, but refrained from doing so out of compassion after her family expressed opposition to an autopsy.
Delayed NNI internal review
- ▪An internal review by the National Neuroscience Institute identified the unreported death of Madam Tan Suan Lin in February 2025, approximately one year after her death in January 2024.
- ▪Singapore authorities filed a police report in March 2025 regarding Dr. Jai Prashanth Rao's failure to report Madam Tan Suan Lin's death, preventing any autopsy from being conducted due to the delay.
Coroners Act reporting obligations
- ▪Failing to report a reportable death without reasonable excuse under Singapore's Coroners Act carries a penalty of up to one month imprisonment, a fine up to S$1,500, or both.
- ▪Singapore's Coroners Act requires any person aware of a death resulting directly or indirectly from medical treatment or care to report it to the police as soon as reasonably practicable.
Debatable claims
- ▪Emotional burden after surgical failure is a valid defense for failing to report a patient's death
- ▪Singapore should grant doctors legal discretion to forgo coroner reporting at a family's request
- ▪Hospitals bear primary responsibility when unreported patient deaths go undetected for a year
- ▪Criminal prosecution is disproportionate for doctors who fail to report deaths solely out of compassion
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