‘Bleeding’ man dies as 3 govt hospitals turn him away in Kolkata

KOLKATA: A 48-year-old Garia resident, who was bleeding from his nose and mouth following a head injury, died after a 10-hour delay in treatment when he was made to do the the rounds of three govt hospitals and turned away from each, citing bed crunch.
Finally, the family managed to approach the chief minister's office at her residence and got a recommendation that led to his admission at SSKM. But Sushil Haldar died shortly thereafter.

His relatives staged a protest on the SSKM Hospital campus, accusing the hospital authorities of negligence that led to his death.
Haldar, an autorickshaw driver by profession, was the sole breadwinner for his family.
He started bleeding from his nose and mouth on Monday night after he sustained a head injury. His relatives rushed him to SSKM Hospital. "We went to the emergency but could not get him admitted. They told us that there was no bed available," said a relative.
He was then taken to NRS Hospital where he was again turned away as there was no free bed. Next, he was taken to Calcutta National Medical College and Hospital. Yet again, it was a repeat of what the family had already heard at the two hospitals.
"Our search for a bed in a govt hospital continued throughout the night. At NRS and CNMCH, we waited for a long time. By then, his condition deteriorated. Desperate, we took Sushil to the CM's Kalighat residence. From there, we received a letter and were asked to go to SSKM," said the relative.
It was Tuesday morning by the time the reached SSKM, nearly 10 hours after they had been to the hospital for the first time the previous day. "He was admitted this time but he died soon after. No one did anything. Had he received treatment on Monday night, he might have survived," said a family member.
A doctor at SSKM said, "The patient was admitted on Tuesday morning after his family furnished a letter from the CM. His treatment started and he was sent to the outdoor department for general surgery. But he then died of a heart attack."
A section of senior doctors has demanded proper infromation on bed availability at hospitals and raised questions over the functioning of the central referral system that was inaugurated at SSKM and four other govt hospitals in the city a few days ago. Manas Gumta, former general secretary of the Association of Health Service Doctors West Bengal, said, "The harassment of patients continues even though the CRS. Why was he not admitted to SSKM at night? How could a bed become available after the letter from the CM was obtained?"
Dipayan Biswas, a junior doctor at SSKM said, "CRS is meant for patients from districts. Also, the system has not become fully functional."