Insha Mushtaq/ Zafar Dar
Amid the tall claims and social media optics, the shocking revelations that have unfolded in the past few days force one to think that beyond the well-managed photo ops and bold headlines lies a grim state of Kashmir’s ailing healthcare, negligence.
In a similar case, four residents of Anantnag town in South Kashmir whose relatives have died in the past few days have made shocking revelations about how alleged medical negligence led to the death of their relatives.
Speaking to The Kashmiriyat, the family members of the victims, one of the bereaved member, whose mother and sister in law died of covid 19 in the last week, said that, “My mother and my sister-in-law had tested positive for COVID-19 on 24th April, and after that, my mother’s oxygen saturation level started to drop to 86-87 in two-three days. Then on the 27th of April, we had admitted her to GMC Anantnag. My mother was a lung-infection patient, her first x-ray after our persuasion was done on 29th April.”
The real story unfolded after the first x-ray. The person who identified himself as Junaid Hameed said, his mother was in that ward for 14 days. “I got my mother scanned more than four times and for the first three, we were not provided any reports, which is shameful for a medical college, the college is worse than a primary health care center,” Junaid alleged.
He said that the hospital does not care about the patients. On 5th, 6th, and 7th May, the hospital authorities took an X-ray of my sister-in-law; I challenge the Principal of GMC to show of printout of those X-rays. “We fought with them then only we got a printout of the X-ray of 7th May. “If someone calls me these days and tells me they have a covid patient, I suggest that they keep them at home and let them die peacefully there,” a disheartened Junaid said.
“On 29th April, my sister-in-law was also admitted to GMC Anantnag. On 1st May, my father was also admitted to GMC Anantnag; four days after seeing the condition of the isolation ward, my father pleaded to the staff that he be discharged so that even if he has to die, he can die peacefully at home.”
On 4th May, my his was discharged from the hospital.
Also, let me tell you that if a patient has no attendant in GMC hospital, the patient will die in the first few days because they survive because of their attendants. The doctors, for namesake, come for a round and check blood pressure and saturation level, which the nursing staff has already done. No senior doctor attends the patients. As already directed by Lt. Governor, the Covid-19 patients have to be treated by super specialty doctors only. They have junior doctors for the night shift who sleep at around 10:30 pm, and then you have to wake them up the whole night if any patient’s health deteriorates.
He said tyat the doctors at GMC Anantnag prescribed a medical test Trop-T for his mother.
“The report of this test takes not more than 10-15 minutes; When i did not find the reports, i questioned the doctors, who said that the reports would take three days,” he said, adding, “the report doesn’t even take three days in an underdeveloped country.”
“Because of their criminal negligence, we lost our dear ones; we saw them die in front of our eyes. My mother’s saturation level was 83, but at the time of death, her saturation level was 43, which was merely due to the fact that there was no follow-up on her dropping saturation level.”
He accused the doctors of initially checking the patient’s blood pressure and saturation level, after which there is no follow-up.
“I have the photos of the in-patient file with me. They don’t even have nursing staff to collect the sample. My mother was a diabetic patient; they once forgot to give her insulin. The next day her blood sugar level was 500.”
Junaid requested the Deputy Commissioner Anantnag and Lt. Governor to initiate an investigation in this regard.
“The dead ones will not come back but we can save others.”
Accusing the hospital of lacking basic infrastructure and facilities, a family member of Another covid patient said, “They do not even have Oximeters; you have to beg them at the counter to provide you oxygen cylinder, Oximeter.”
He accused a doctor named Aziya Manzoor, a local doctor of threatening them that he would register an FIR against the family.
Another victim, Aadil Nizar Tinda; said that his father was admitted at the GMC on 29th April and on the same day, the hospital took his blood sample.
“On 30th April, I went to collect the reports; they told me they had sent them to the medical lab. They had to do a simple baseline test, KFT, LFT, Sodium-Potassium test. On 1st May, I directly went to the medical lab to collect the test, but they told me they had not received this sample”
Speaking to The Kashmiriyat, he said,”On 1st May, they again took my father’s sample, till 3rd May, I again started following the report and still didn’t get it. Dr. Aziya Manzoor asked me the purpose of seeking the report, upon which i responded that i needed to get it checked with another doctor because the doctors here are not bothered to check.”
He alleged that the senior residents are only available at call.
“When my father’s health deteriorated (his heart rate was 210), I called the doctor, and the phone was received by his son, who told me that his father (doctor) is having lunch and will call me back. Is this our health infrastructure?”
He said that the staff at GMC is inexperienced, arrogant; they don’t have the manners to talk, they don’t have sympathy. If a patient dies, they tell you, “This person is dead; take him/her.” That is the kind of staff we have here.
The Family member of another covid victim, Abdul Ghani Shah had a similar story to share. “I admitted him to GMC Anantnag on 3rd May. His saturation level was 93; when doctors came at night, they prescribed him some nine medicines, but the hospital staff only gave him two, a pantop and an anti-biotic.”
“I again asked them about his medications, and they told me he did not need any. I opened the file and found they have prescribed nine medicines, out of which only two were given.”
He said that his father’s saturation level for two days was 93, which means he was going fine, but because of their negligence (unavailability of Oxygen), the conditions are worse. We appeal to Lt. Governor tom look into the matter.
“Our patients died in dire need of ventilation, but they don’t have ventilators available here. We all know that they were allotted ventilators last year, but they are only kept In the storeroom.
Another man, Aasif Hameed Dada, whose wife died of covid said, “The day before my mother and wife died, I was begging them for an oxygen cylinder late at night because they desperately needed it. At 6:00 am, the oxygen level of my wife sank, but they allotted me an oxygen cylinder at 6:10 am, which I had to carry on the trolly. It is all because of their negligence that I lost my patients. They don’t even provide ambulance service.”