WHEN my friend was rushed to a private hospital recently he was suffering from a disease, which remains a mystery for doctors till his death later in a government hospital. At the time of his hospitalisation in the private medical centre he was fully conscious, although his poor health had turned him fragile. His condition gradually deteriorated. Because his family did not have financial resources, he was shifted to a government hospital where he passed away within days for lack of care.
In the government hospital, doctors failed to diagnose the disease, which is not known to the relatives of my friend even after his death.
At first glance, this may appear to be a case of a person who medical science was unable to save. However, his relatives feel otherwise as they point the blame at negligent doctors who failed to diagnose his disease.
Many government hospitals and private medical centers are caught in such allegations. Negligence of duty, dealing with the patient in a casual manner and lack of professionalism and expertise are a few common allegations.
It is a common complaint that senior doctors try to hush away patients at the junior-level practitioners and concerned specialists are usually not available.
While the country lacks medical facilities to the core, all that is available is restricted to the private hospitals. Apart from the exorbitant cost of medication, patients are sometimes unnecessarily made to undergo a series of tests. Prominent hospitals in this regard have their own preferred laboratories from where they want tests to be conducted.
It is a common observation that patients are not only fleeced, but care is also lacking. Very often, attendants complain of lack of co-ordination and support from the doctors, especially when hospitalised, and all that is available is medication at the hands of paramedical staff.
A number of administrative bottlenecks - such as making sure that the patient is properly registered, cash memo has been paid and the file prepared - are said to be the causes superseding the attention of doctors.
Furthermore, medico-legal intrigues often keep doctors from attending to their call of duty. It was not so long when a qualified doctor himself succumbed to his injuries at the emergency ward of a local hospital, as doctors and the attendants argued over legal issues of admission.
Attendants often complain that in cases of emergency, specialist doctors are not available and efforts are made by the local staff to push away patients' whims and wishes. Cases dealing with cardiac-related problems and neurology are referred for costly scans and tests only to make a point. Even then, the patient is not properly attended to and is usually asked to get himself admitted. It takes around 12 to 16 hours before a proper specialist is made to attend to the patient after he or she has been admitted.
Doctors have their own tales to tell. They complain of being over-pressed and in high demand. Long hectic duty schedule often turns them into not being able to attend to each and every patient.
They argue that they too are human beings and have their own limitations. Doctors say that they try to go through the clinical history, as narrated to them, as well as the patient's symptoms. However, they admit that in most cases the initial diagnosis is often changed taking into account either the reaction of the patient to the drugs or discovery of new symptoms.
A survey of a number of hospitals revealed that due to lack of co-ordination among the paramedical staff and the doctors, patients are made to suffer.
Furthermore, patients and their attendants at the government hospitals complain that very often 'right connections' help them gain an audience with a specialist. Otherwise they are only attended to by junior doctors.
Another frequent grievance is one of being treated solely at the hands of house officers with no recourse to senior doctors. Consultants and senior doctors, however, say that they have enough to do other than attending to all the patients in OPD and wards. Manning of departments and looking after other engagements keep senior doctors away. A routine daily round is all that the patients and their attendants manage to get for consolation from senior doctors and consultants.
Patients often complain of cheating on medicine count in private hospitals. It so happens that patients, who are not on the panel, are asked to furnish medicines throughout their hospitalisation and the prescription is changed from time to time. Allegations are traded in which the hospital staff is blamed for stashing unused medicines.
Doctors, nonetheless, argue that the communication gap between the doctors and the patient is responsible for the ill will. Apart from communication gap about understanding of medical jargon, there are also technical diagnosis specifications that are unsaid between a patient's attendant and doctors.
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