Travel curbs cut off funds supply, Bangla patients fear treatment may stop midway
Times of India | 8 August 2024
Kolkata: Bangladeshi patients now admitted in Kolkata hospitals or seeking treatment at OPDs are worried over returning home due to the travel uncertainties and shortage of funds. A significant number who had arrived in Kolkata before the fresh round of turmoil started are fast running out of money. Almost all Bangladeshi patients pay their bills in cash, mostly in Bangladeshi or US currency, said hospitals.
Nine Bangladeshi patients are now admitted across three units of Manipal Hospitals. Fifty-two-year-old Sakhawat Hussain Majnu came to Kolkata from Dhaka on July 5 to get treated for oesophageal cancer. While he returned to Bangladesh on July 13, he had to visit Kolkata again for follow-up treatment on July 28. “I am here with my nephew while my two sons and daughter are in Dhaka with their mother. The internet and phone outage has added to my worries. I need to stay here for the next 40-45 days for radiation and chemotherapy and I am extremely worried about my family,” he said. Majnu added that unless his wife reaches Kolkata with money, his treatment will come to a halt.
Salman Nawaz, 25, a resident of Dhanmandi, came to Kolkata a week ago for his father Salim Nawaz’s kidney transplant at Manipal. “The current situation in Bangladesh is worrisome and we are longing for peace to return. We remain hopeful that things will improve. My only concern now is my father’s health,” said Nawaz.
What has made it worse is that Bangladeshi currency has been devalued. “We were carrying just enough cash for a few tests and consultation at Fortis Hospital. But with the currency being devalued, we will have to curtail our stay and return without completing the treatment,” said a 32-year-old woman from Khulna who is now in Kolkata for an orthopaedic treatment.
Tapas Mistry, a patient from Barishal, has been in Kolkata for over a week for follow-up treatment after a surgery back home. Mistry is undergoing treatment at the OPD of BP Poddar Hospital and plans to return home earlier than scheduled due to the disturbance. “People back home have been calling to tell me about the violence. Though I had planned to stay in Kolkata for a week more, I may return earlier,” said Mistry.
Those admitted for surgeries, chemotherapy or transplants could soon face a cash crunch, said Ruby General Hospital general manager (operations) Subhashis Datta. “Since they pay in cash, there is a limit to the amount that they can carry. So, patients who have to stay here for a long period are usually joined by relatives who carry cash to keep the treatment going. With the situation now being volatile, many are not sure if their relatives will be able to travel,” said Datta.