Death of 14 year old due to cancer: AIIMS, Safdarjung Hospital deny accusations of admission denial
New Delhi : As the heartbreaking news of a 14-year-old girl suffering from cancer dying after being denied treatment at several Delhi hospitals came to light, the authorities have now sprung to action.
While the Delhi Health Minister has taken cognisance of the situation writing to the Chief Secretary to give a response, Hospitals like Safdarjung Hospital and AIIMS have released their statements in the matter
Delhi Health Minister Saurabh Bhardwaj taking cognizance of the death of a 14-year-old girl wrote a letter to Chief Secretary Naresh Kumar, the Governing Council that manages the Delhi State Cancer Institute (DSCI), to reply within four weeks as to why the patient was denied bed or treatment at AIIMS, Safdarjung Hospital and Delhi State Cancer Institute.
According to the Hindustan Times, Mr Bhardwaj has wrote in the letter that, “It is also pertinent to mention that I have issued several written directions to secretary (health) regarding improvement of services in Delhi government hospitals, availability of medicines, among other things, after I assumed the charge of minister (health). However, no action taken reports have been provided thereupon”.
AAP leader Dilip Pandey alleged at a press conference earlier in the day that bribes are being paid to touts in Safdarjung Hospital and AIIMS, Delhi, for getting admission and beds.
AIIMS, Safdarjung deny Allegations
On Thursday, 08 December 2023, the Medical Superintendent of All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Delhi wrote a letter to the Director of AIIMS regarding the death of a 14-year-old child. In the letter, it is written “Patient Fayza was earlier admitted and treated at Rajiv Gandhi Superspeciality Hospital from October 26, 2023, to November 23, 2023. The patient was registered at the OPD of Dr BR Ambedkar Institute-Rotary Cancer Hospital (DBRAIRCH) at AIIMS on December 4, 2023, vide UHID no 107170025. She was attended by a consultant and a diagnosis of T lymphoblastic lymphoma was made. The patient was referred to emergency management as per practice”.
The Medical Superintendent further stated that “The patient, instead of visiting the emergency, approached the media. The patient was called by AIIMS Media Cell for treatment in an emergency. The patient visited the emergency on December 5, 2023, at 11.07 am. The investigation regarding the allegations and further treatment were carried out, but unfortunately, the patient succumbed to illness at 5.20 pm on the same day”.
Similarly, Safdarjung Hospital Also denied the accusations.
According to ANI, the 14-year-old girl was Faiza Ansari, who was a resident of Timarpur, Delhi. Faiza was suffering from leukaemia, a cancer of blood-forming tissues, for four months. Now, the family of the deceased is claiming that they struggled to find a hospital in Delhi for Faiza’s treatment. As per as ANI, “When we went to the emergency there, we were again turned away, and were told that there were no beds available. We also tried getting a bed at Safdarjung hospital, but were asked to wait for a few days till a bed was vacated”, said Faiza’s mother Raziya Ansari.
