Advice to RIMS : Prioritise bed allocation in ICU to senior citizens
Patient told : No bed in ICU
Source: The Sangai Express

Imphal, October 12 2025: Retired IAS officer Mutum Yaiskul Meitei has expressed desire for the Regional Institute of Medical Sciences (RIMS) to introduce special provisions for senior citizens, such as prioritized bed allocation in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) at the hospital.

Speaking to the media, Yaiskul Meitei stated that his father M Iboton, was admitted to RIMS (Medicine) on Thursday, October 9, 2025 .

Saying that his father experienced breathlessness on Saturday and his condition worsened by evening, he added that he consulted the doctors to transfer his father to the ICU, but they informed him that no beds were available in the ICU .

He stated that the doctors at RIMS advised him to transfer his father to a private hospital due to the unavailability of ICU beds.

Consequently, Yaiskul said that he arranged for an ambulance and moved his father to a private hospital for treatment.

He stated that his father passed away despite the best efforts at the private hospital.

Saying that his father was over 90 years old and that he may have reached the end of his natural lifespan, Yasikul Meitei acknowledged that doctors cannot save every life.

He, however, expressed regret that RIMS which is the biggest Government hospital in Manipur, advised transferring his father who was at a ward to another hospital due to the unavailability of ICU beds.

He emphasized that he does not want other families to face a similar ordeal.

Noting that many hospitals now have dedicated geriatric wards to provide specialized healthcare for elderly patients, the retired IAS officer added that he might have had no regrets had his father been treated in RIMS's ICU ward.

Saying that he had read news reports about the expansion of ICU beds at RIMS, he urged the hospital Director and Medical Superintendent to reserve some of these beds specifically for senior citizens.

M Jadumani, Yaiskul's brother, stated that RIMS is a prestigious medical institute in Manipur, but his father's case was not the first instance of patients being transferred to another hospital due to the unavailability of beds.

Appealing to the RIMS authorities to take necessary measures to ensure families who cannot afford private hospital expenses do not face the same fate as his father, he also urged the RIMS Director and Medical Superintendent to monitor the conduct of the hospital's doctors and nurses.

Comment