The family of a 65-year-old man alleged he died at MY Hospital in Madhya Pradesh’s Indore on Tuesday after its staff refused to treat him, prompting the opposition Congress to launch an attack on the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government.
Pandurao, a resident of Kamala Nehru Nagar complained of chest pain on Tuesday. As his family members couldn’t get any ambulance they took him to MY Hospital, the teaching hospital of MGM Medical College, on a two-wheeler in the afternoon.
His relative Rahul alleged the staff at the hospital denied treatment to Pandurao and he collapsed after some time on the two-wheeler itself.
Family members said an ambulance service operator had earlier demanded Rs 300 to take the patient to the hospital. They were ready to pay the amount but the ambulance service operator refused, forcing them to take the patient to the hospital on the two-wheeler.
A video of the man lying on the two-wheeler outside MY Hospital and his family alleging denial of treatment by the hospital soon went viral on social media.
State Congress president Kamal Nath’s media coordinator Narendra Saluja sought to know from chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan if this was the state of affairs on health services in Madhya Pradesh and how many people would die like this in the state.
The government should take action against the responsible persons, he demanded.
“The man died as he didn’t get treatment in the hospital and also he didn’t get an ambulance. The kin had to take him to the hospital on a two-wheeler. This didn’t happen in any remote part of the state but in Indore known as the commercial capital of Madhya Pradesh,” senior Congress leader KK Mishra who belongs to Indore said.
“The situation in other parts of the state can easily be gauged but the chief minister is not tired of making lofty claims about the health services,” Mishra added.
Public health expert Amulya Nidhi said such a death should be a matter of serious concern for the state government.
“It should immediately institute an inquiry to look into the man’s demise and his kin’s allegations. At the same time, the government should have a plan to ensure that amid the Covid-19 situation people with other ailments too get immediate and effective treatment,” Nidhi said.
State BJP spokesperson Rajneesh Agrawal said the Congress was being hasty in its statements.
“Congress is in habit of jumping the gun before getting details. Any death taking place is unfortunate. The government will certainly look into this,” Agrawal said.
Dr Pravin Jadia, Indore’s chief medical and health officer (CMHO), denied the family’s allegations.
“The man had gone to the hospital on Monday and later returned home. On Tuesday, he was first taken to a private hospital from where he was referred to MY hospital but when he reached the hospital he was declared brought dead. There was no question of denial of treatment,” Jadia said.
