2 state-run hosps refuse to admit emergency patient

KOLKATA: Despite the state health department's clear instruction that no emergency patients can be denied treatment by any hospitals, two state-run hospitals in Kolkata stand accused of denying treatment to a new born baby.

The baby was given birth at a private nursing home in Uluberia last Monday. The patient was suffering from respiratory distress since birth. Family members took the patient to Dr BC Roy Children Hospital but the newborn was denied admission as there was no bed in the ventilation. Family members have alleged that when they took the baby to the Calcutta Medical College and Hospital, they were told that there was no bed. The patient was finally admitted to a private hospital in South Kolkata.

The state health department on repeated occasions urged all the hospitals not to deny admission to any emergency patients. The incidents of patient refusal often surface against private hospitals in the city following which the West Bengal Clinical Establishment Regulatory Commission (WBCERC) has issued clear guidelines to the private hospitals asking them to provide treatment to emergency patients even if they do not have a bed available. The hospitals have to shift a critical patient only after stabilizing his/her health condition. Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee also sent across a clear message that no hospital should deny patients who require emergency treatment.