EWS woman operated on before schedule

After Millennium Post highlighted her ordeal, a slum dweller, suffering from a renal ailment, was operated upon around a month before her scheduled date of surgery. Though the hospital rescheduled her date of operation, the EWS patient was asked to purchase medicines from outside.

"They prescribed some medicines post operation and asked me to purchase those from outside. It cost Rs 500," said Sabana (35), who was operated for kidney stones by laser technology at the Batra Hospital on August 17.

"It's less painful now," she said, adding that the doctors has asked to visit the hospital next week and then after a month. She was operated on the 10th day after getting admitted to the hospital. Earlier, her operation was scheduled on September 22, eight months after she first visited the hospital, complaining of acute stomach pain.

"The hospital has two pharmacies – one for paid patients and the other for EWS patients. The pharmacy for EWS patients has around only two dozen medicines. They are asked to purchase the remaining drug from outside," said Delhi government's liaison officer for the hospital. He added the EWS patients still face discrimination in the hospital. Sabana, a domestic help, had first visited the hospital on February 1. Meanwhile her condition went on deteriorating and she had to quit her job too.

Millennium Post had highlighted her ordeal on June 22, following which member of the EWS monitoring committee Ashok Agarwal had written to the Batra Hospital to take up the case on priority.