Open House What needs to be done to address negligence, insensitivity in public healthcare centres?

Punish those guilty of callousness

Just as people were beginning to believe that health infrastructure in Ludhiana district was improving, disturbing news broke that a patient’s corpse was kept on one bed with another patient receiving treatment at the emergency ward of the Lord Mahavira Civil Hospital in Ludhiana on April 14. Hospital employees who insensitively placed a deceased patient next to a living patient may face disciplinary action, but imagine the plight of the patient’s relatives, whose hearts must have been broken after witnessing such negligence. For all of us, when a patient is brought to the hospital for treatment, the person behind the surgical mask is regarded an angel of hope; however, when that belief is shattered due to such negligent acts or lapses, that angel appears to be a harbinger of death. This is not the first time the Civil Hospital’s emergency ward has been found negligent; in August 2023, a person died after falling off a stretcher. An inquiry was held then too, and staff shortage was blamed for the lapse. However, nothing appears to have changed as the hospital continues to grapple with inadequate infrastructure. Today, health is a human right, and, thus, healthcare needs transparency. Medical personnel at public health facilities should be held accountable for any lapses and the guilty be severely punished.

Novin Christopher

Address systemic pressure points

Addressing negligence and insensitivity in government hospitals involves several key steps. First, there is a need to establish proper protocols and guidelines for patient care; this must include handling complaints and addressing negligence. Staff should treat patients with kindness, respect and understanding. Feedback also plays a very important role to continuously evaluate and improve processes related to patient care and satisfaction. Thus, there is a need to review feedback and implement changes to enhance the overall quality of care provided by the hospital. The state government should be held responsible for instances of negligence in a public healthcare setup along with doctors and hospital staff. In my opinion, there is an urgent need for the government to work on improving the healthcare system in the state. Proper funding should be given to hospitals in order to improve working conditions for the staff. There is a need to address any systemic issues within the hospital environment that may cause stress among the staff, for this will definitely impact patient care. The private sector should also invest in public hospital infrastructure and resources to improve patient care standards. Besides,

there is also a pressing need to review the existing laws and regulations related

to healthcare.

Japleen kaur

focus on rural public healthcare centres

The state-run civil hospitals, rural dispensaries and Aam Aadmi Clinics cater to the needs of the poor, but the healthcare facilities provided in these centres are far from satisfactory. To improve the health services, there is a need to resolve the problem of staff shortage in hospitals on priority. SMOs should strictly implement the duty rosters and take strict action against late-comers. They should keep a vigil and should be able to exert control over the functioning of the hospital to ensure that no doctor, nurse or other staff member dare work carelessly so that every patient is given the best attention and treatment. Healthcare staff should be trained to deal with emergencies. There should be an adequate number of in-house general surgeons available throughout the day. A system of evening rounds by specialists should be strictly enforced and problems of the patients should be solved with proper advice. It is observed that the state government is working extensively for promoting the AAP Clinics, but at the cost of the existing system, especially the rural dispensaries which cater to more than 50 per cent of the total population. Instead of wasting resources on such clinics, the government should improve the existing healthcare system in rural areas. If a medical professional endangers the life or safety of a patient due to negligence, the competent authority should punish him with imprisonment or a fine, or both, depending on the nature and extent of harm caused. A victim of medical negligence may also file a complaint against the negligent doctor for professional misconduct before the Medical Council of India (MCI). The MCI has disciplinary jurisdiction over doctors as mandated under the Indian Medical Council Act, 1956. For claiming any compensation, the victim may have to approach

a civil court or the

consumer court.

RS SEmbhi

emergency staff needs to be more vigilant

This is a new low for the public healthcare system as a patient was made to lie on a cot next to a corpse! Such a thing should never be repeated! What is more shocking is that this happened when there were doctors and nurses on duty in the ward. It cannot be refuted that they were not aware of the condition of every patient and that they knew a patient had died and his corpse was lying in the ward on a specific cot. The first thing that needs to be done once a patient has died is to move the corpse to a mortuary, as soon as possible. This callousness must be investigated. There is no reason why the dead man’s corpse was lying in the ward. All this shows is negligence of both the nurses and doctors and they must be punished for that. Further, the hospital needs to have a few spare ordinary cots, if not the specialised hospital type, for emergencies. If needed, they must be used to accommodate new patients instead of putting them on a cot where a corpse is already lying. This will help the doctors and nurses on duty

in the emergency ward be

more vigilant in future.

gautam dev

establish transparent reporting system

To combat negligence and insensitivity in public healthcare facilities and to hold doctors and authorities accountable, the government should establish a transparent reporting system that allows patients and their families to report cases of negligence without fear. This method should allow for anonymous reporting to promote transparency. Furthermore, authorities should conduct thorough investigations into reported situations to ascertain the facts and identify any errors. Moreover, it is critical to regularly examine the quality of healthcare services being offered by the public health institutions, as well as providing training and professional development for doctors, nurses and other healthcare workers.

tamanpreet kaur khangura

change to avoid

public outcry

How we care for the ill and honour the departed speaks volumes about our culture. What happened recently at the Ludhiana Civil Hospital’s emergency ward is not what we as residents expect of a respected and advanced public healthcare facility. Negligence exposed by the incident, where a patient’s corpse was found lying on the same bed next to an alive patient receiving treatment, highlights the importance of responsible and systematic procedures in healthcare settings. I think, there is a need to equip each patient with a monitor to trigger an alarm in such emergency situations. Additionally, each doctor should be responsible for around 20 patients ensuring adequate attention and care distribution. Designating separate sections in hospitals for men and women ensures privacy and addresses specific medical needs efficiently. Delays in addressing this matter could have grave consequences. Such delays could incite public outcry, sparking protests or strikes driven by concern over human welfare and safety.

harshita vasan

govt needs to enhance public healthcare infra

Nothing can be more important than one’s health. A sound mind lives in a healthy body. But in India, especially at civil hospitals, not much attention is given to the care and treatment of patients. It is very unfortunate that a patient was being treated on a bed where a corpse was lying. There is a pressing need to provide more in terms of infrastructure to public health institutions. Those staff members who treat patients with an air of casualness must be punished and their licences withdrawn. The fact that the patient is the unit which the healthcare system caters to and depends on must be recognised by all those who work in the system. Governments, whether in state or Central, are not paying much attention to the civil hospitals and moreover, these institutions do not provide a safe and congenial atmosphere for the patients. The government must spend more on public healthcare by providing timely and proper treatment to patients. For a patient-friendly environment, there is a need for personal space, a homely atmosphere, supportive care, good design and access to external areas and provision of facilities for recreation and leisure. From the patient’s perspective, the essence of a patient-friendly environment has more to do with what the place is like to be in, how it feels. A patient-friendly hospital is moreover made by the staff’s inclination towards providing quality care and realising the value of human life. Besides, there must be provision of facilities like separate toilets, grounds and prayer rooms.

dr mohd saleem farooqui

inculcate culture of accountability

Today, health is a human right in India, and the government is working hard for universalisation of health services by operating from the ground up. Health without accountability is a challenging task. Doctors and paramedics in the public health centres should take it as their responsibility to maintain proper cleanliness and sanitation of their facilities so that patients do not suffer. The government needs to work promptly to address the issue of insensitivity as a key component of healthcare reforms is accountability. More needs

to be done to inculcate a

culture of accountability

and empathy.

Jaspreet Kaur

provide clear info on medical procedures

Some of the issues that need to be addressed to make civil hospitals patient-friendly are:

First, accessibility to a general physician should be assured to all those who require healthcare. Second, waiting times for all services should be minimised. Third, treatment information and instructions about all the procedures, both medical and administrative, should be made clear. There is a need to hire well-trained patient counsellors as they form an effective link between the patient and the hospital staff, and make the patient’s experience better and the physicians’ task much easier. Fourth, check-in and check-out procedures should be patient-friendly. For example, for in-patients, there should be a system of discharging patients in their rooms, eliminating the need for the patient or the family to go to another office or counter in the hospital and waiting there for a hours. Fifth, communicating with the patient and the family about possible delays can avoid a lot of frustration and anxiety. Sixth, other services such as communication, food, etc, should be accessible for the patients and their attending families. The government should pay proper and timely attention to provide a patient-friendly environment in civil hospitals so that nobody remains deprived of medical aid and facilities. Callousness needs to be penalised.

Farzana khan

Ordered to put SOP in place

I have ordered to put in place a standard operating procedure (SOP) for dealing with heavy rush and proper patient handling at all government hospitals and health centres, especially where patient inflow is in excess of available beds, in the district. It is also directed that it may be ensured for the future in all hospitals and health centres that such an incident is not repeated. The Civil Surgeon has been instructed that there must be proper sensitisation of health staff and even in case of heavy rush, the doctor on round should ensure appropriate arrangement for proper patient handling.

— Sakshi Sawhney, Deputy Commissioner

QUESTION

Following several incidents involving school buses reported in the recent past wherein a number of students even lost their lives, what should be done to ensure safety and security of the children travelling in school buses?

Suggestions in not more than 200 words can be sent to[email protected] by Thursday (May 2)

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