Spurned patient questions RIMS efficiency
Source: The Sangai Express
Imphal, March 18 2019:
A patient who was discharged from RIMS on the ground that no ventilator was available for performing surgical operation has questioned the efficiency of RIMS after he was told by other doctors that his problem did not require operation.
Ningthoujam Pishak (50) of Kakching Turel Wangma Ningthou Pareng was taken inside operation theatre twice but no operation was performed.
Pishak asked if he was spared from undergoing surgical operation on account of doctors' errors or shortage of infrastructure.
Speaking to media persons at Manipur Press Club this afternoon, Pishak said that he was admitted in Chest Ward of RIMS on January 2 this year.
After some days, he was fitted with a drain on the right side of chest.
Later, the attending doctors, after examining a CT scan report, told Pishak that he needed to undergo operation.
As such, February 12 was fixed for performing operation.
After undergoing all necessary tests 24 hours before the scheduled date, Pishak was taken inside the operation theatre at 8.30 am of February 12 .
After confining him within the operation theatre for around one hour, he was wheeled out saying that the ventilator had broken down.
Again, March 4 was fixed for performing the operation.
On March 4 too, Pishak went through the same experience of February 12 .
This enraged the whole family but they kept their anger under control, Pishak said.
One of the attending doctors suggested that the operation may be performed at Raj Medicity but it would cost Rs one lakh.
As he was not in a position to pay Rs one lakh for the operation, Pishak appealed to the doctor to discharge him.
After he was discharged, Pishak consulted some other doctors and they told him that there was no need for performing operation and he would recuperate after removing the drain fitted on his chest.
"After the drain was removed, I felt better", Pishak said.
He went on to ask whether it was error on the part of doctors or lack of ventilators which spared him from undergoing operation at RIMS.
On the other hand, Dr Thokchom Chito a doctor who attended on the patient asserted that Pishak came to the hospital with complaints on the chest and on examination it was found that his lungs had a hole and it had been infected.
If the pus is removed then the lungs can improve, but there is always the chance of the infection returning if not operated, he said and added that in some very rare cases the lungs can return to normalcy if the pus is removed by inserting a drain.
The doctor also rubbished the charge that Pishak was advised to go to a private hospital and added that the ICU comes under a separate department, so no doctor can know beforehand whether beds are empty or not.