Five doctors barred from duty till high-level probe is completed; attendant says she was refused admission, hospital denies allegations
Five doctors barred from duty till high-level probe is completed; attendant says she was refused admission, hospital denies allegations
A woman gave birth to a baby near a waste bin outside the emergency ward of Safdarjung Hospital on Tuesday morning. Videos of the incident shared on social media showed the woman’s attendant complaining that the hospital did not admit her despite she being an “emergency” case.
Following the incident, five doctors of the Central government-run hospital have been debarred from duty till a high-level probe into the matter is completed. The action has been taken on the directions of Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya following an inspection by a fact-finding team sent to the hospital. The woman and the newborn are currently in the care of Safdarjung Hospital, read a statement issued by the Union Health Ministry.
In a statement, Safdarjung Hospital said that its doctors had examined the woman and offered admission but then she did not return with the admission paper. The police have not yet received any official complaint on the matter.
Mother, baby stable
Both the woman and the baby are stable, said the hospital.
In the videos, doing the rounds on social media, the woman’s relatives are heard alleging that the hospital did not admit her on Monday and she spent the night outside the emergency ward.
“This morning, they were telling me to make an OPD receipt and then the doctor will see her. This is an emergency case, why else will we be waiting outside their door?” the attendant was heard saying in the video.
Meanwhile, the Delhi Commission for Women has issued a notice to Safdarjung Hospital on the issue.
‘Traumatic experience’
Rabia Singh, 28, an advocate, who was at the spot and shot a video, told Today News 24, “When I reached there, the woman was already lying on the ground. It was the other women at the spot who took a dupatta and created a separation for the woman to deliver the baby.”
Ms. Singh said no one from the hospital was present when the woman was in labour and a nurse came only after some women cried out for help.
“The women around her were howling for help. It was a traumatic experience. I have never seen anything like this in my life,” she said, adding that the woman gave birth in extremely unhygienic conditions next to a waste bin on the hospital premises. “They were from a poor family and the hospital staff was pacifying them after the incident. Would anyone else tolerate this?” Ms. Singh said.
DCW chairperson Swati Maliwal said, “The incident is shameful and urgent steps must be taken to ensure action against the negligent officials and to rectify the situation so that it is never repeated again.”
The hospital in a statement said they have a “no refusal policy”. “She was examined by the SR [senior resident doctor] on duty at 5:45 p.m. on July 18 and her condition was found to be 33+6 weeks gestation with preeclampsia in early labour. The patient was offered admission but she did not return with the admission paper,” the statement said.
“The next day the Senior Resident on morning GRR [Gynae Receiving Room] duty was informed that a patient was delivering outside. A team from GRR was dispatched immediately and the patient’s delivery was taken care of,” it read.
The hospital has formed a committee to further investigate the matter.
