Health Minister Kamineni Srinivas on Wednesday said the government cannot pay huge salaries to specialists in the State-run hospitals like the private and corporate ones.
On the shifting of a baby burns case to the Guntur Government General Hospital (GGH) by the Vijayawada GGH, Dr. Srinivas said at a press conference here that for one or two cases, the government cannot spend huge amounts for specialist doctors.
Asked why the Vijayawada GGH doctors discharged the baby and the subsequent delay in shifting the patient to Guntur, Dr. Srinivas said: “I have enquired into the incident. The baby’s mother acted cruelly and the police will look into the criminal angle.”
The baby, who was tortured by her mother Md. Asma Begum, by causing burns with a hot spatula, was admitted in the Vijayawada GGH on February 11. However, the doctors had discharged her stating that there was no Paediatric Surgery Department here.
The child rights activists questioned the doctors for discharging the baby and stopping treatment to the patient instead of referring the case to the other hospital. The baby was shifted to the Guntur GGH at about 10 p.m. on February 12, only after the district Collector directed the hospital authorities to continue treatment.
