Dirt a blot on government hospital

“The hospital is dirty. The stench from the toilets is enough to make a healthy person fall sick,” said Ranjana from Mangolpuri. She is among hundreds of patients who have observed the unhygienic conditions prevailing at the 500-bed Dr Baba Saheb Ambedkar Hospital (BSAH) in north-west Delhi.

“The services are good. There is no delay in getting results of medical tests. But it is one of the dirtiest hospitals in the city,” said Surya Haldar, a mechanic from Jharkhand.

It is the largest government hospital in the area and it caters to people in north and north-west districts.

Hundreds of patients also come from neighbouring Haryana.

“Cleanliness is a major issue. I went to inspect the third floor of the hospital and found that things were really bad,” said Dr C M Khanijo, medical superintendent, BSAH.

Patients at the outpatient department also said doctors do not treat them well.

“I have been coming to BSAH for the last one-and-a-half-year to get treatment for a neurological disorder. The attitude of the staff, including doctors, has changed for the worse in the last six months,” said Rajkumari from Pitampura.

“Most of the doctors are busy talking among themselves. They also take a lot of time with each patient,” said Rajkumari.

However, Dr Khanijo said it is a biased perception of patients.

“The expectations of people from a super-speciality hospital like ours are big. But a lot of workload leads to a mismatch between expectations and actual service delivery. Doctors are also human beings and there is possibility of misconduct at times,” said Dr Khanijo.

“We have asked the authorities to expand the hospital and turn it into a 750-bed one,” he added.
Another problem that is prevalent at almost all government hospitals in the city is the long queue of patients waiting to get free medicines distributed by the government.

“I stood in the line from 1 pm to 4 pm to get medicine for my wife and our newborn,” said Bijay from Narela. He is a labourer who had to let go off one day’s wage to get medicines.

The pharmacy in the basement has eight counters. However, due to lack of staff only three to four open for the service of the patients who come in for treatment.