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Patient accuses Ambedkar hospital staff of harassment |
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By: Priyankka Deshpande |
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Date:
2012-03-23 |
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Place: Pune |
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Diabetes patient notices saline well past its expiry date being given to another patient and informs hospital officials and political workers, says staff now harassing him because party activists gheraoed them
Doctors and nursing staff of Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar Hospital at Khadaki Cantonment administered expired intravenous (IV) saline to a patient admitted there since the past few days with jaundice.
Genuinely concerned: Swapnil Jadhav, who informed BJP workers that
a jaundice patient was given IV that had crossed the expiry date
Swapnil Jadhav (29), admitted in the hospital for diabetes treatment since March 12, discovered the staff administering IV which had expired in February to the jaundice patient, with whom he shared the ward. He brought it to the notice of the administration, and it was later learned that the box of outdated IV bottles had been kept aside for disposal. Jadhav also informed local BJP workers, following which almost 40 party activists from Khadki Cantonment gheraoed the doctors and nursing staff.
Now however, the whistle-blower claims that the hospital authorities are pressurising him not to leave the hospital premises to have his meals.
"My parents have passed away and my wife is presently in Mumbai. Therefore I do not have anyone here to take care of me. Yesterday morning I left my room to have breakfast as there is no food arrangement in the hospital for patients. I came back within an hour, but doctors refused to allow me inside the hospital and threatened to declare me as an absconder. They asked me to procure a police NOC," Jadhav said.
He added that he is now planning to request the doctors to discharge him on Saturday.
Meanwhile, BJP president of Khadaki Cantonment Amar Deshpande said that a large number of boxes containing IV fluid were found to be outdated.
BJP activists gherao a doctor at Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar Hospital in
Khadaki Cantonment. Pic/Krunal Gosavi
"The hospital authorities did not have any record of the doctors and nurses who treated the patient with outdated IV. The matter is very serious and could even prove harmful for the patient. Therefore, we have decided to take this issue to the CEO of Khadki Cantonment Board and will be demanding serious action against the culprits," Deshpande said.
He added that the local BJP workers would also register a complaint with the Food and Drug Administration.
Hospital says
Resident Medical Officer of Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar Hospital Dr Ranjit Bhosale admitted the mistake. "Some members of the nursing staff and doctors have committed the mistake inadvertently without cross checking the expiry of IV. However, the jaundice patient didn't suffer any kind of reaction," Bhosale. He added that there was a stock of some outdated IVs in the hospital which they had kept aside to be disposed of. "Perhaps the outdated IV bottle, which was used for this jaundice patient, could be from this stock," Bhosale said.
He added that since the authorities were unaware of who exactly treated the patient with outdated IV, they were going to send a letter to all the nursing staff and ward in-charge demanding an explanation.
"We will receive clarification on Saturday and immediately give our report to the CEO of the hospital for further steps," Bhosale said.
To get the hospital version on the specific allegations made by Jadhav, several attempts were made from various numbers to contact Bhosale for comment, but he did not pick up the calls. An SMS was also sent and till the time of going to press, no response was received. |
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