July 10, 2009 1:43:12 am
Kusum Singh (45) died of tuberculosis at Sion Hospital,with doctors on strike. There was no one to attend to her last night, said her husband,Krishnalal Singh.
At Oshiwara Maternity Home,Nikhat Sheikh (24) was discharged while undergoing labour pains. She had been admitted on Wednesday evening but was asked to leave.
Four-year-old Bhumi Kharwa,accidentally poked in the eye by her brother,was refused admission to R N Cooper Hospital. Her father,who does waterproofing work,could not afford even an X-ray at a private hospital.
Narayan Shashagar (68) lies on the veranda of JJ Hospital after he was forcibly discharged from the ward where he had been admitted to for a month. Suffering from a urinary infection,Shashagar,a farmer in Buldana,has been asked to return in eight days.
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It was Day Three of the resident doctors strike and there was no sign that patients sufferings will end,with the government and doctors yet to negotiate.
The Maharashtra Association of Resident Doctors (MARD) should resume work and then hold talks. To go on strike is inhuman, said Rajesh Tope,minister for medical education. The last option will be to impose ESMA or other such laws. We are requesting them to rejoin work. We are considering their demands and will take a couple of days to decide.
On the demand for higher stipend,he said,States with our size and population pay much less. Yet we are willing to increase their stipend but they should not be so adamant.
Junior doctors insist on continuing the strike till their exact demands are met. We want our stipend at par with the Central Residency Scheme,which is adopted by many states, said Dr Anil Dudhabhate,MARD secretary.
From Friday,resident doctors from the BMCs 14 peripheral hospitals will join the strike along with third-year students of Bachelor of Ayurvedic Medicine and Science (BAMS) and Dental College.
There will be some relief for patients. MARD doctors at civic-run King Edward Memorial Hospital,Sion Hospital and B Y L Nair Hospital,and the state-run JJ Hospital will run parallel outpatient departments outside those hospitals.
Our OPDs had 6,026 patients today; normally there are around 10,000. Nearly 400 senior doctors are on duty in the peripheral hospitals. Emergencies and deliveries are a priority, said Dr Seema Malik,chief medical superintendent of the peripheral hospitals.
Despite contingency plans,hospitals on Thursday turned away patients and discharged others. Only serious patients are still admitted. The wards are almost deserted, said a source at JJ Hospital.
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