OPD footfall up but emergency, in-patient ops wait for docs’ return
Times of India | 21 September 2024
Kolkata: OPD footfall in almost all medical colleges apart from R G Kar was either normal or near normal on Friday.
While resumption of emergency duty in a phased manner by juniors from Saturday will be a huge relief for hospital administrators and senior doctors, the indoor services will still be under pressure till the junior doctors resume work full-fledged.
On Friday, IPGMER saw a surge of 9,500 patients at its OPD and 500 patients were rushed to the emergency till 5 pm. The hospital had admitted 300 patients by 5 pm. “The OPD footfall is already normal while both admission rate and elective surgeries too have picked up. The most problematic area is emergency and the indoor wards where many patients need round-the-clock monitoring,” said an official at IPGMER.
At Medical College Hospital Kolkata, the OPD footfall was around 4,000, a little less than its normal count. “While admission rate is still lower than normal, occupancy in some departments like cardiology, gynaecology and critical care unit is almost full. Some juniors are already helping unofficially. Once they resume work full-fledged it will definitely improve patient care services,” said an administrator at MCH Kolkata.
Mina Rajak was admitted for blood transfusion at Medical College Hospital on Thursday night, but her family complained that she has not been treated properly. “Only a few doctors are there in the ward and they said my mother’s condition was critical. We cannot afford to shift her to a private hospital,” said her son Suraj.
R G Kar recorded 3,355 OPD and 90 emergency patients while 107 were admitted till 3 pm. But in the absence of junior doctors, the hospital is prioritising serious patients for admission. “My father is being tended by by senior doctors. But I saw many empty beds in the ICU. Protest and treatment can go on simultaneously,” Said Rahul Paul, whose father is admitted at RG Kar.
At Calcutta National Medical College, around 4,000 patients were attended by doctors on Friday. “But we continue to admit only patients needing immediate surgical of medical intervention,” said an official at CNMC.