Four Srirangam GH staff face action after TVK MLA’s inspection

Trichy: Four staff members at Srirangam Government Hospital faced disciplinary action after allegations surfaced that patients were being charged for wheelchair and stretcher services.The action comes days after TVK MLA S Ramesh inspected the hospital and flagged complaints from patients. According to orders issued by the joint director of health services (JDHS), government staff members M Valarmathi and R Sangiliyammal were transferred, while temporary staff members R Saravanan and A Kannan were dismissed following an inquiry. During his inspection on Friday, Ramesh interacted with patients and hospital staff regarding the hospital's functioning and development. He later alleged that some staff members were accepting bribes for providing wheelchair services. "Based on the inquiry initiated after my inspection, officials confirmed that four staff members were involved in receiving illegal gratification, following which disciplinary action was taken," Ramesh said. Ramesh told TOI that he received a complaint alleging that Rs 1,500 was collected to shift a pregnant woman on a stretcher to another ward. "I raised the issue with officials, but they claimed they were unaware of it. I did not accept that explanation," he said. The MLA also questioned how supervisors failed to detect the alleged malpractice. "The supervisor should be more answerable," he added.