TRICHY: Poor maintenance at the old block of the Mahatma Gandhi Memorial Government Hospital (MGMGH) led to a woman being injured after a ceiling fan fell on her recently. The incident came to light on Monday, when the victim refused to pay a fee for taking a CT scan, saying the injury was caused by the hospital's negligence. Following the incident, the dean of the hospital ordered officials to check all fans in the old building to ensure the safety of patients.
Earlier this month, James Mary, 50, a resident of Sarkar Palayam, admitted her daughter Anushri, who had a fever, in the hospital. The child was admitted to the female surgical ward (III). On August 14, when James Mary was feeding her daughter, the ceiling fan above them suddenly fell on her back. Later, she returned home after some medicine was prescribed by the doctors there.
Four days later, as there was still some swelling, she approached the GH for treatment but was asked to pay the fee for a CT scan. She refused to pay the fee as the injury was caused by a mishap in the hospital and approached the dean, demanding free treatment.
Speaking to TNIE, Dr A Arshiya Begum, dean (in-charge) MGMGH, said, “The incident happened on the night of August 14 when one of the fans fell on a patient’s relative. Though she seemed normal, we had asked her to get admitted for taking a scan but she left. After five days, she came to the outpatient ward for treatment saying she had a swelling after the incident. She was asked to pay the usual Rs 500 for taking a CT scan. After she insisted on free treatment, the scan was done without any payment and her condition is normal."
Further, she added that officials in charge of maintenance work in the hospital have been ordered to check all fans in the old building to ensure that such incidents don’t recur.
In another recent incident, Pusphavali, 34, was walking towards the surgical ward to see her father who was admitted for treatment. She had to leave her footwear outside before entering the ward and stepped on the metal step before the ward entrance.
As the metal was touching one of the wires, Pusphavali felt a mild electric shock when she stepped on it which caused her to lose balance and fall. Though she didn’t sustain any injuries, action is being taken to rectify the issue, said hospital sources.