: Pregnant women were turned away from a maternity and children’s hospital, while one of the busiest hospitals in North Delhi wore a deserted look on Saturday as doctors and nurses of the municipal corporations went on strike.
The North Delhi Municipal Corporation’s (NDMC) Kasturba Hospital provided emergency services, but many pregnant women who came to the OPD were sent back. The Bara Hindu Rao Hospital, which sees thousands of patients every day, was almost empty by the afternoon – just hours after the staff’s stir began. The medical staff of the corporations, along with other employees, have not been paid for three months.
The staff at Kasturba Hospital began the day by discharging and referring patients to other hospitals.
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Baano, who was attending to a relative admitted at Kasturba Hospital, said: “My sister-in-law is full term pregnant. On Friday night, out of nowhere, we were asked to shift her to a government hospital.”
However, she said that government hospital also turned them away. They had returned to Kasturba Hospital in the afternoon hoping to get the patient re-admitted.
“My children were born at Kasturba Hospital as well, so I was certain that it was a good hospital. We feel cheated now,” she said. On the verge of tears, Baano added that the family, which lives in a slum, did not have any other option apart from the free services offered by municipal and government hospitals.
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Another patient, eight-year-old Urooj, was left waiting for assistance. Searching the hospital for a doctor willing to treat the child, her mother, Chaman, said she was very worried about the girl’s high fever: “We’ve come all the way from Wazirabad, and don’t have any other place to go. I am scared for my daughter’s health,."
While many complained about the lack of service, some patients alleged that the hospital administration had treated them with scorn.
“We are being barred from entering the hospital. The staff sitting at the counter is shouting at us and not letting us speak. Do they not see our misery? We have never felt more insulted,” said Sheila, whose pregnant daughter-in-law was admitted at Kasturba Hospital.
Meanwhile, there were hardly any patients at Bara Hindu Rao Hospital. “We had discharged or referred patients to other hospitals early morning. Now we are sitting on an indefinite strike,” said Dr. Aditya Gupta, the president of the Resident Doctor’s Association of the hospital.
( The writer is an intern with The Hindu )