How safe are Government Hospitals?
By kishusia
@kishusia (1066)
India
March 18, 2008 4:25am CST
People go to hospitals to get well. If they get well then their good luck should get more credit than the efforts of doctors and hospital administration & staff. We have been hearing stories about wrong treatment and delayed treatment.But now there are news about safety also. A prematurely-born five day old girl was charred to death as the warmer, in which she was being treated for jaundice, was not safe. I short circuit in the warmer sparked a fire. This bizarre incident happened in Bhagwan Mahavir Hospital in Pitampura in New Delhi on Wednesday. The hospital is run by Delhi Government, whose CM and Health Minister keep busy in getting their photos published in advertisements financed by public money.
Timely warnings by the mother of the girl were not taken seriously by the staff. Even after they rushed to the scene, they did not try to save he girl, but were only busy in dowsing the fire. Lack of safety in appliances used in the hospitals has become a cause for a death.
Another death due to short circuit in phototherapy machine was caused in Shardaben General Hospital in Ahmedabad, where a three year old baby was being treated.
1 person likes this
2 responses
@pkc3000 (1266)
• India
18 Mar 08
Dear friends You are rightly raised the topic for which I personally thanked you. Your views are genuine and admirable. Really Govt shopital are in shabby condition. Though our govt is spending lots of money for the betterment and awarding good quality treatment but doctors,nurse and paramedical staff's apathy towards patient is day-by-day deteriorating. In govt hospital nobody is taking care and behaviour of all staff starting from doctor to 4th class staff are horrible. Poor people have no alternative but to go the govt hospital. The authority of the hospital has no time to look after this affair. In some hospital money is incurring but basic amenities are lagging and some where good doctor & staff are there but they are hadicapped due to financial crisis. These are the state of affairs of our medical facilities . The incidience you have mentioned in your topic really a sad incidience for the medical profession and also for the human being. The old baby could have been survived if right & timely action was taken by the hospital authority. I have expeprienced and I have seen the condition of govt. hospital. It is the high time for govt to take steps against errant doctor,nurse and other paramedical staff otherwise poeple will revolt one day. Policy maker & law making agency & also Health minister should think on the subject.
pkc3000
@Kentbush18 (202)
• China
18 Mar 08
I don't think governmental hospitals are necessarily safe compare with the private ones, though there are few private hospitals here in China.
I have more faiths on governmental hospitals for they enjoys large budgets and can heavily invest on improving the medical machines. It's not optimistic that a private hospital can run against a government one in terms of equipments and technology. But it so often happens in Chinese hospitals that patients are wrongly diagnosed and treated. Law suits between patients and the hospitals are frequently read on the newspapers.
But I don't think these incidences are unique to the governmental hospitals. They occur to all, public or private. But still, I have more faith on the governmental ones, as they provide, in most cases if not all, the best doctors and equipments.
