In a heart-wrenching video doing the rounds on social media, a woman from Mumbai’s Ghatkopar can be seen pleading for her brother’s life who is unwell, as no hospital is ready to admit him.
‘My brother had a fever for four days and the doctor prescribed a blood test. He came positive for Typhoid. The doctor said no to COVID-19 test that time. But now he faces major breathlessness. Only then did the doctor write a COVID-19 test and we were finally able to do one. The report for the test will come after 48 hours but the situation of my brother is deteriorating every passing hour,’ the sister said.
1/2 .. #हॉस्पिटल म्हणतात #Corona चा रिपोर्ट आल्यानंतरच तुम्हाला घेणार आणि रिपोर्ट यायला 48 तास लागणार तोपर्यंत हा जीव भगवान भरोसे ? गोरगरीब जनतेचे जीव घेणारे तुमचे नियम बदला .जर एका #पोलिसाचे हाल इतरांचं काय ?@mybmc @CPMumbaiPolice @OfficeofUT @rajeshtope11 pic.twitter.com/xeyUDxkPx4
— Ram Kadam (@ramkadam) June 7, 2020
‘We went to so many hospitals but all are asking for a COVID-19 report. They refuse to admit my brother who himself is a COVID warrior.’ she said.
‘So much crucial time is lost in these procedures. How can we wait for one more day for the COVID report to come and then admit my brother?’
Her brother is a policeman with Mumbai Police and has been in service for last two and half months.
Several citizens of Mumbai have complained of the delay in the city as they are often caught in the tedious procedure of getting a test done, await test reports, then get a hospital bed and an ambulance on time.
BJP MLA Ram Kadam said, ‘It’s a nightmare for Mumbaikars. The problem starts when symptoms develop. The first fight is to get it in writing from a doctor that a COVID-19 test is required. Then private labs take around 48 hours to deliver the results.’
‘Doctors are worried to prescribe a COVID test since many doctors received notices of threat from the government. A clinician needs to test any patient with fever and cough for COVID test as per ICMR guidelines,’ Dr Deepak Baid, President of Association of Medical Consultants said.
‘Labs need to give the report in 24 hours with restriction of a number of labs which can test in each municipal ward. This has led to delayed appointments and subsequent results,’ he said.
‘Any patient deteriorating in this period has a herculean task to get a bed since the toll-free number 1916 does not help without a positive report and many COVID-19 nursing homes are not keeping triage areas for these suspect patients,’ Baid added.
With a shortage of beds, finding a hospital in Mumbai has become a mammoth task. After all this struggle, if a patient somehow manages to find a bed then the struggle to arrange an ambulance begins.
Several patients in the financial capital have lost their lives waiting for COVID-19 test reports, finding beds or waiting for the ambulance to arrive.
Also Read: [Video] Man Fights For Ailing Father In Desperation After Hospital Denies Treatment In Delhi
