Patient's kin clash with junior doctors at SSKM over unavailability of bed

Tension prevailed at the SSKM Hospital late Wednesday night after some junior doctors were manhandled by relatives of a patient, who was allegedly denied admission by the hospital authorities due to unavailability of beds at the hospital.

Dilip Mukherjee, a resident of Howrah, was taken to the SSKM Hospital late Wednesday after he was suffering from some ailment. Doctors at the Emergency ward attended to the patient and his relatives urged the doctors to admit him for treatment. However, the doctor present at the Emergency ward said that it was not possible to admit Mukherjee to the hospital as there was no bed available.

Mukherjee's family members insisted on having him admitted to the hospital, but their efforts were to no avail. Soon, a heated altercation ensued between the patient's relatives and the doctors. The agitated family members reportedly attacked a junior doctor in the hospital.

After hearing about the incident some other junior doctors rushed to the spot. A scuffle then broke out between the junior doctors and the patient's family members, in which some junior doctors received injuries.

After hearing about the incident, police rushed to the spot and brought the situation under control. They have so far arrested one person for his alleged involvement in this incident. They are conducting raids to nab the other accused.

The junior doctors alleged that the patients' relatives also threatened them with dire consequences and dropped names of some leaders and ministers of the ruling party. They also alleged that police have failed to check assaults on junior doctors at state-run hospitals, in spite of the repeated pleas.

A section of junior doctors and staff members at the hospital blamed that the presence of some touts for affecting the health services. Some touts are still giving admission to patients at the hospital in exchange of money. They also alleged that these touts, who are still operating from the hospital, enjoy tacit support from some political leaders and roam about freely in various wards to admit patients.

A large contingent of police was deployed at the hospital following the incident. The junior doctors lodged a written complaint at the nearby police station in this regard. They also have decided to submit a deputation to the medical superintendent highlighting their demands.

The demands include arrest of all the accused, infrastructural development, proper security of doctors, putting an end to touts' presence at the hospital and assurances from the hospital authorities that no counter FIR will be registered against the junior doctors.