Woodlands & Desun hosps pulled up by regulatory body for medical negligence

Kolkata: Two private hospitals in the city —Woodlands Hospital and Desun Hospital—have been accused of glaring medical negligence in which an elderly patient was denied admission by the latter as the family members failed to pay Rs 2 lakh instantly during admission as demanded by the hospital whereas the former had allegedly given an ultimatum for shifting the patient within 2-3 hours after he had tested positive for Covid.

West Bengal Clinical Establishment Regulatory Commission (WBCERC) while hearing the case on Wednesday found an 'apparent' negligence on the part of both the hospitals and therefore instructed to deposit money with the commission till the case is disposed of. Desun Hospital has been instructed to deposit Rs 4 lakh while the Woodlands authorities have to deposit Rs 1 lakh. Desun Hospital had earlier been accused with a similar charge where an elderly woman was denied admission for a long time and kept inside an ambulance as her family failed to pay the amount demanded by the hospital.

Ashok Kumar Ghosh (79), a resident of Hindustan Park was admitted to the Woodlands Hospital with some gastroenterology problems. He initially tested Covid negative. Later, he had tested positive while undergoing treatment at the hospital. The hospital staff members called up the patient's relatives and asked them to shift the patient to another hospital within 2-3 hours. The family members paid the bill of around Rs 2,09,000. The Woodlands recommended three private hospitals including Desun for the patient to be shifted. Desun sent an ambulance that charged the patient Rs 9,500 for covering 11 km distance. The complainant alleged that the hospital refused to release the body till the dues were cleared. The allegations were however denied by the hospital.

When the patient was taken to the hospital at around 10 pm the hospital demanded Rs 2 lakh for admission. The patient's wife Subhra Ghosh who is the complainant here in the case urged the hospital authorities to admit the patient and she needed some time for arranging the amount. Desun Hospital allegedly told her that treatment would be given after she pays the money. The patient was kept unattended inside the ambulance for one hour till one of the woman's relatives transferred the amount to the hospital from abroad. The patient was admitted to Desun on June 11 this year and died on June 26. The patient had to pay Rs 8,13,080 to the hospital. Two days before the patient died, the hospital categorized the patient under the state government's free health service quota.