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Darjeeling, June 13: Kamala Biswakarma, a middle aged woman who is desperate to get her daughter-in-law treated properly at the Darjeeling district hospital, took just 10 minutes to paint a clear picture of the health care in the hills for union minister of state for health Dinesh Trivedi.
The minister has come to Darjeeling “to get a report on the health care system in the hills under express direction from Mamata Banerjee”.
The woman approached the minister when he was about to leave the Darjeeling district hospital.
“Sir, mein ek baat bataun? (Sir, shall I tell you something?)”, she started narrating the plight of her daughter-in-law Sukmati to the minister. Sukmati had to be taken to Siliguri after collecting money through donations to get a CT scan done.
“After coming from Siliguri (after getting the CT Scan report) I am again being told that I should take her to Siliguri and I do not have any money. There are no medicines available here and I am being unable to do anything to save her life,” said Kamala, who works as a labourer at Rangbull, 12km from here.
The minister, who had not come across much complaints from the patients during the hospital tour till then, suddenly faced a volley of grievances from the crowd that gathered around Kamala.
“What is her problem? Please, explain it to me immediately and I don’t want her to suffer just because she does not have enough money,” said Trivedi, offering financial help “from my own pocket” to treat the patient. “I know the infrastructure here is crumbling but her problem must be redressed immediately,” said the minister.
The doctors present alongside the minister explained that the condition of Sukmati was serious. “She has a brain haemorrhage and the blood clot is more than 60ml. Her condition is very serious. We have given medicines and only two drugs are unavailable here,” said a doctor.
Trivedi asked the doctor if he should pay for the medicines also.
The conversation not just guaranteed the doctors’ attention for Sukmati but also opened up muted voices.
Yogen Rai, a resident of the Happy Valley tea garden said: ‘There is nothing to talk about as far as health care is concerned. Every time, there is some reason for the authorities to cite to refer serious patients to Siliguri. Many have to share beds with other patients and no drugs are available here.”
A visibly upset Trivedi said: “We have to start from the very beginning. Everything has been destroyed in the past 35 years. I found out that there are no facilities for heart patients and they have to be taken to Siliguri in case of emergencies. There are no ICUs here. This is unacceptable.”
The minister also found that “everything was gloomy” inside the hospital. “The doctors and the nurses are trying their best but the hospital is understaffed. Hygiene is a major problem here and the place does not give you the confidence,” he said.
The minister while inspecting the hospital kitchen was surprised that lentils were being cooked in a 5 litre pressure cooker for 275 patients. “You are not feeding the patients properly,” he told the staff.
Perhaps after meeting Kamala, the minister must have understood that the hills are being starved for want of proper health care.
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