Patna, April 24: Ara resident Radha Nandan Kumar, 80, was rushed to a private nursing home in the state capital after he suffered a heart attack three days ago. He was admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU). He was allegedly put on ventilator without consulting a cardiologist.
When Radha’s condition deteriorated, the nursing home authorities advised his relatives to fly him to Delhi. But they charged Radha’s family members Rs 60,000 as ICU fee though the nursing home does not have an ICU for heart patients.
“We did not know about it at the time of admission. Why did they admit him in the first place if they did not have the facility or the expert?†said a distraught relative of Radha.
Sources said Radha’s case is not an isolated one. Like the nursing home in Kankerbagh that fleeced Radha’s relatives, a number of clinics and health hubs have come up in Patna. Most do not have proper infrastructure, equipment or medical professionals to provide healthcare services.
At present, there is no law or regulatory body to check these nursing homes that do not even need a licence to open doors.
“There are very few nursing homes in the city that provide quality healthcare. Most are out there to make money by cheating the patients,†said Yaarpur resident Rajeev Agarwal.
“Recently, a boy in my neighbourhood became unconscious in school. He was rushed to a private nursing home at Gandhi Maidan, where he was admitted in the ICU. Hours later, the doctors at the nursing home declared the boy dead. The nursing home authorities also charged his parents Rs 25,000. Later, in the post-mortem report, it emerged that the boy had been ‘brought dead’ to the nursing home. An FIR was lodged against the nursing home authorities but nothing has been done till date,†said Agarwal.
On being advised to take Radha to Delhi, his relatives arranged for an air ambulance from a super speciality clinic. But the doctor in the ambulance found Radha’s condition not stable enough for him to fly — he had low blood pressure. He was then shifted to another hospital under the supervision of a cardiologist. His condition is still critical.
On being asked what the state government is doing to regulate such nursing homes from duping patients and their families, Amarjeet Sinha, principal secretary, health department, said: “We are finalising the Clinical Establishment Act. The provisions of the act have been laid down. It will soon be presented before the cabinet for approval.â€
The state government passed the bill in 2008 but the rules and norms are yet to be implemented.
Doctors and medical professionals are, however, sceptical about how effective the act would be in enforcing quality healthcare delivery. Most of them believe it would lead to an “inspector rajâ€.
“When a government official is given the authority to issue licences or conduct inspections, there are chances of corruption. Therefore, a more comprehensive policy should be made,†said Dr A.K. Agarwal, a neurologist.
Dr Ajay Kumar Singh, general secretary, Bihar Health Services Association (BHSA), said while they were in favour of the act, they also had reservations about some of its provisions.
“We have reservations on some of the provisions of the act, like jail term for doctors if they violate the norms, supervision of healthcare by bureaucrats, regulations of fees by the state government and restricting nursing homes to commercial areas. BHSA and the Indian Medical Association should be taken into confidence before finalising the draft of the act,†added Singh.