Medicare in India

Everybody including the "media" and "mass of India" -translated into so called intellectuals,(others I guess are the "volume" of India,as they are grounded due to gravity)are speculating , debating about Mrs G going abroad for medical care.Its time when one and anyone can shoot up on popularity charts by expressing "concern" or "speedy recovery" to the first Lady of sorts.Sure one does wish her a "speedy" recovery.Provided she needs our wishes.

So what prompts the "elite" "previleged" "rich" "super-rich" to seek medical help yonder shores? All done smoothly snooking a smart middle finger at most of normal Indians who get fleeced for medical aid?It would be churlish to grudge the ones with moolah who can afford it, but considering that anyone of us could be next , one just wonders on this "Medical Social divide".

India has roughly about 1.2 billion people.Have heard in the movie “3 idiots” that pizzas get delivered within half an hour but ambulance still don’t reach in half an hour!

Medical facilities are poor,treatment and patient care is worse.In an emergency situation like the 13/7 blasts in Mumbai,wounded were piled on in a vehicle meant for transporting goods,some on hand carts to take them to a hospital.I think we expect patients who have just been a part of "terror attack" to have this wonderful noble sentiment of "adjusting".Then of course they wounded have to accept that they are dumped on strechers in usanitised corridors of governments hospitals,in searing agony,wondering whether one would live at all..

Alternatively some of us fall sick and get admitted to a hospital.Those I guess are luckier than being a part of an accident or tragedy as they can exercise an option to "choose".Large hospitals like Appollo,MIOT have rate cards(Am not kidding you).Rate cards for the rooms,rate cards for the doctors to suit ones budgets I guess.I dont know what is more a frightening way of being "hospitalised".Then ofcourse one is perpetually frightened of the doctor who is treating you.If its your luck you may as well end up with one who has gotten a doctors degree by paying oodles of money.

While all of the above may appear to be the rantings of an aging,cynical woman the following is a real life incident.This is being shared just to explain the horror of being poor,illiterate and a victim urgently in need of medical care in India.

Have this lady ,a domestic help living with us, for more than a decade now.We all call her "Aaji" meaning grandmother in Marathi.A third grandmother for my child in the truest sense.She is the kind who would sneak behind my back,spend her meagre earnings to buy my son a bhel or an ice-cream just to see him smile.Shouts back at me sometimes when I scold him.

Her own family consisted of a married son (with 4 kids!as it happens in India)living in a slum and a daughter settled elsewhere.Six months back her son called at about 9 pm and informed Aaji that he was headed home.She finished her chores and retired.At about 12 midnight we recieved a call that her son had been mowed down by a bus on a highway and had been admitted to "Rajawadi" government hospital(mumbai) with a severe skull injury.

We rushed with her to this government hospital where he was admitted in the emergency ward.It was 12.30 am.The emergency ward constituted of a room with 6 beds and outside which there was this steel table around which 4 young medical interns were admitting patients.All as a part of their curriculum to get the coveted MD degree. On enquiring they said that the CT scan machine in the hospital was operational only from 8 am to 8 pm .Course of treatment would not be started unless the report came in.If we wished we would have to take the patient outside the hospital precint to a nearby "private" 24 hours CT scan centre.

So a patient with a half cracked skull was dragged across the road for scans.The reports came in a hours time which showed damage to the brain .When we went back to the hospital the young intern who was tired,irritable(he couldnt even visist the loo) said "Rajawadi unfortunately does not have a neuro surgeon.You will have to shift him to the next nearest hospital-Sion.So please take him there."

It was 2.30 am.Then they tell us to arrange a ambulance we would have to wait until 5 am as all hospital ambulances were away on duty.The patient was bleeding profusely,in a state of delirium we arranged for a private Maruti 800 which was also a transport vehicle and rushed him to Sion hospital emergency ward.The first reaction of the MO on duty "Sorry,we cannot admit this patient.The accident has not taken place in our jurisdiction".After lot of hot words and cajoling we admitted him into a ward.

The doctor did not come.For two hours.Time 4.30.In my usual style went charging to call the doctor who I was told was busy doing a surgery in their emergency ward on the ground floor.I opened the door and to my horror found a patient with severed limbs, a 80% burns victims writhing on a strecher...but most horrifying was the doctor on duty was standing over a bed with two interns and two nurses holding a green plastic sheet to give some cover the patient and was doing a surgery in middle of emergency ward.The two interns were holding trays with incisors and parts of the body which they were operating.I had seen something like this in makeshift hospital scenes in war movies !But this was Mumbai ...was it?The doctor barked at me to get out and informed he would be with us as soon as he finished removing splinters from the person he was operating on.As I tottered towards the ward containing Aaji"s son,the fact that in India this is what happens struck my gut.As expected Aaji lost her son the next day.Her tears are a constant reminder of the substandard medical facilities which we subject most of the people in our country to.

While someothers take the safe route and go abroad to get treated.Get well soon Mrs.Sonia Gandhi.The entire nation is praying for your speedy recovery.