24-hour Search for Bed: Patient dies after 3 Government Hospitals denied treatment in Kolkata

Kolkata: In a tragic incident, a 48-year-old man passed away after allegedly being denied treatment at three government medical college hospitals in Kolkata. The patient's family reportedly spent 24 hours trying to secure a hospital bed. 

The incident occurred on Tuesday when Haldar, a driver by profession was bleeding from his nose and mouth, and was brought to the hospital by his family in search of medical assistance.

The patient’s family reportedly spent 24 hours trying to secure a hospital bed, only to be refused at all three institutions. Police sources revealed that the family first opted for treatment at SSKM Hospital, where they were refused as the hospital had no vacant seats. Then, they turned to search for treatment at two other major hospitals in the city: Medical College Kolkata and NRS Medical College and Hospital.

A patient's family member, in a conversation with a news channel, mentioned that they had been trying to get Haldar admitted and get him the proper treatment since morning.

Also Read: West Bengal Govt launches Central referral system in 5 medical colleges

A woman from the family, distraught over the preventable loss, added that they had been going from one place to another since the previous morning. She stated that the incident would not have occurred if he had been admitted earlier and mentioned that they had come there three times since the last morning.

In response to the incident, a senior official at Medical College Kolkata admitted that they had inquired about the allegations but could not find any information regarding the department where the patient had been brought.

As per the recent media cover by Telegraph India, “This is indeed an unfortunate incident, but we have no documented record of where the patient came from or who told the family that the man cannot be treated here,” said the official.

The state government launched an online patient referral system on November 1, designed to prevent patients from going hospital-hopping in search of a vacant bed. This referral system is launched across five major government medical colleges in Kolkata which include SSKM, Medical College Kolkata, NRS Medical College, Calcutta National Medical College, and RG Kar Medical College. Through this, each medical college could directly refer patients to other hospitals with available capacity.

The introduction of the online referral system was, in part, a response to the demands of junior doctors, who have long argued that the lack of a centralized system often causes unnecessary delays and frustration for patients and their families. In the past, due to the frustrating system where families struggled to find a bed, doctors often became the target of their anger and frustration. This centralized system aims to protect doctors from such harassment.

However, despite the introduction of the system, reports suggest that it may not yet be fully functional. According to the reports, patients were still being referred with handwritten cards, and in some cases, no destination hospital was specified, leading to confusion and delays in care.

Also Read: Patient's attendant assaulted at SSKM Hospital, Doctors raise safety concern