Still in shock from mass deaths in a short time, patients and kin express helplessness and lament that they have no option but to stay put in killer Kalwa hospital
Meena and Deepak, parents of Janhvi Shirke, 32, who’s being treated for pneumonia in the ICU ward where 13 deaths occured; Pushpa and Gayatri, the mother and wife of malaria patient Suraj Ramole, 30, who is on oxygen support in the ICU at the hospital. Pics/Eshan Kalyanikar
Puspha Ramole, 60, rushed her 30-year-old son Suraj to the ICU of Kalwa’s Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Hospital four days ago due to a severe case of malaria—a decision that would soon bring sleepless nights to the family. Over the course of 18 hours, from Saturday afternoon to Sunday morning, the hospital reported 18 deaths, 13 of which occurred in the ICU. The series of deaths began around 11.15 pm on August 12 and continued until about 9.40 am the following day.
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One after the other, we heard announcements on the speaker, requesting families to visit the ICU because patients had passed away,” recalled Pushpa, who has been staying at the hospital along with her daughter-in-law, Gayatri.
The ICU ward in which 13 of the deaths occured at the Kalwa hospital. Pic/Eshan Kalyanikar
As everyone outside the ICU unit on the hospital’s first floor wondered about the unfolding events inside, Pushpa said, “I spoke to my son on the phone. He told me not to come inside unless I could be strong because a lot of people were dying.”
‘Doctors keeping us in dark’
Gayatri said the doctors share with the family very little about patients’ condition or the chosen line of treatment. “For days, the doctors have only been telling us that they will update us on his condition,” she said. Suraj remains on oxygen support.
Kalyan MP Shrikant Shinde speaks to one of the hospital authorities on Monday
All three are vegetable sellers and reside in Vaada, near Bhiwandi. The family considered moving Suraj elsewhere after the events over the weekend, but he will have to be transported in a vehicle with oxygen support. “We can’t afford that nor can we pay for a private facility,” Gayatri said.
On the other side are Meena and Deepak Shirke, who have been waiting for 20 days for their 32-year-old daughter, Janhvi, to be discharged. She battles pneumonia and shares the same ICU as Suraj. Meena works as a domestic worker while Deepak works at a library.
Scenes from Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Hospital at Kalwa
Meena told mid-day, “We have lost faith in the hospital after witnessing so many deaths, but we have no alternatives. Paristhiti nahi tar kai karnar? [Our situation is such. What can we do?]” Both families mentioned that they were told to undergo blood tests at private facilities, for which they had to spend in thousands out of their own pockets. Furthermore, the elderly Shirke couple said they were asked to do a blood test after midnight. “We searched for a testing facility at night, but could only get it done the next day,” Deepak said.
In a separate incident, earlier this month, a family transferred a patient due to pregnancy-related complications from a private hospital to this facility and alleged that the hospital initially refused treatment, stating non-admission of patients from other hospitals. “We chose this hospital because we couldn’t afford it there. Our relative needed a caesarean section. It was only after a lot of pleading that another doctor in the hospital admitted us. The next day, the doctor who had initially denied treatment began shouting at us,” alleged a family member.
In a report by mid-day, dated August 12, the hospital’s dean, Dr Rakesh Barot, said the facility was overwhelmed by a large influx of patients due to monsoon-related ailments. The shortage of beds, including in the ICU units, has created challenges. Smaller clinics and hospitals in and around Thane often refer patients to the Kalwa facility.
Security was beefed up in the hospital on Monday, as Chief Minister Eknath Shinde was expected to visit in the aftermath of the recent deaths. Riot control vans stood stationed at the gates. Police were conducting an inspection of the first-floor ICU, where the deaths had occurred, with a sniffer dog and metal detectors. Meanwhile, the CM’s son and Kalyan MP Shrikant Shinde visited the facility and spoke with authorities.
A panel probing ‘negligence’
A number of ministers have already taken note of the large number of deaths within a short timeframe at the hospital. A committee has been formed to investigate medical negligence on the part of the hospital.
On Thursday, NCP’s Jitendra Awhad visited the facility in response to patient complaints. On that day, there were five deaths in various wards. Awhad alleged medical negligence, citing that a deceased body had been left in the ICU for hours after the person had passed away. The hospital, however, explained that the body was kept there as it was mandatory for them to conduct a police panchnama before the post-mortem, and they were unable to move the body until a police officer had arrived.
In the meantime, as reported by news agency PTI, authorities have commenced the process of relocating patients with non-serious ailments and newcomers to the nearby Civil Hospital, provided they are willing to be transferred.
Aug 12
Day patients began to die
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