As the axiom goes “After event even a fool is wise” and at Jodhpur’s Umaid hospital they are proving it right . For those who have missed the haunting news in National dailies , 16 women have died so far in Jodhpur Government Hospital due to administration of allegedly contaminated IV fluid; The issue has lately raised questions about state of hygiene and sanitation in hospitals .

The all time favorite blame game is in full swing. Inspection committee is calling names to doctors at Hospitals, Doctors are blaming the administrative authorities, administration is blaming lack of resources Following lines from a famous Bob Dylan song always ring in my head after such incidents.

How many ears must one man have
Before he can hear people cry ?
Yes, how many deaths, will it take till he knows
that too many people have died?
The answer is blowing in the wind......

It would not be out of place to share an appeal mailed to me by a senior doctor of the subject hospital .

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DEATHS OF DELIVERED WOMEN IN UMAID HOSPITAL, JODHPUR

The treating Doctors’ perspective

THE MISHAP- What has happened in the deptt of Obstetrics ,Umaid Hospital,Jodhpur in the month of February has been a terrible accident- a very unfortunate heart rending series of incidences over which no single person or a group of people had control. It was not an act of commission or omission but seemingly the interplay of an out of the world hitherto unknown FACTOR that mercilessly snatched away so many lives.

THE DEPARTMENT- If the work culture as prevails in our department for so many years were to be responsible then this kind of deaths should have occurred in the past too. But our statistics vouch for us that similar mortalities have never been an integral part of the history of this department.Most of us have been associated with this department for more than 10-15 years and we have not seen or heard of such deaths because of PPH.

FINDINGS OF COMMITTEES- Our teaching has been faulted, our training has been criticised, our devotion to work and duty has been challenged, our integrity questioned and our department has been cursed. Eyebrows have been raised on each and every act of ours. They came with a purpose and they have been able to achieve it. Our students are ignorant fools, training is faulty and non- existent, work culture is pathetic, sanitation is abysmal and we do not give any TIME to the department. We were held directly responsible for a chocked gutter or a faulty window. It appears that the mountain like figures of upwards of 70 deliveries per day are being handled by inept students and untrained nurses.

The falling standards of medical teaching and learning in medical colleges is not an ailment confined to our department, the reasons for this are many, the debate is a long one and surely has nothing to do with the present RUN OF MORTALITY in our operation theatres that is being investigated.

ACTUALITY- Our statistics do not speak this way. Mortality figures from our institution compare well with others. Our OPD attendance is rapidly going up and we are facing an unprecedented rush in our ANC clinic, Labour rooms and our OT’S are panting for breath.

Private practice- Doing private practices outside hospital hours in our residential chambers is not a nefarious activity, a shoddy doing or a crime. We only render our services to the citizens of this city strictly in accordance with the rules and regulations that govern the state medical college teachers and in a way we work almost double than our Delhi counterparts.

THE EXPECTATIONS- Instead of experts coming to our rescue trying to help us find the culprit in the environment, that evasive superbug, that puzzling factor we only have a host of higher ups descending upon us making us parade in front of them like hard core criminals only to hear that you are shoddy, faulty in your basics and that everything is wrong with you and your work and you deserve the gallows.

WE AS WE ARE- This is not helping anybody. Our morale is shaken, our confidence battered, our self esteem lost and our hand tremble when we operate or conduct a procedure.

OUR PRAYER- We collectively mourn these deaths, we are as shaken as the kiths and kins of the deceased. Why the Almighty chose our hands for these unfortunate deaths we fail to understand. But our image has been tarnished and we deserve a little more than mere brickbats for our years of service to the Suncity.

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The question here is not that who is solely responsible for the incident ? The questions are : Doesn't someone get the salary for ensuring the quality of drugs administered, ? Is someone paid from exchequer's money for ensuring proper sanitation and hygiene ? If not then, how everything comes in order and becomes spic and span on day of some minister's visit ?If everything about the hospital, staff and doctors is shoddy and out of place then what were these inspecting authorities doing, besides waiting for things to go wrong ?

I am no one to blame anyone with my limited intellect ,but I as a concerned citizen surely want to ask or tell few things to every doctor who is reading this .

Someday go to the emergency of your hospital and silently watch how nonchalant and easy going residents and doctors at duty are. Please tell them that the causality brought there is someone's father , someone' husband and world of few might be revolving around that person .For you he is just another patient . Please try to understand the condition of people and at least pretend concern and appear sympathetic.

If you know things are lousy and below acceptable standards why don't you refuse to carry on? Time is ripe for us to decide whether hands of few semi educated politicians or your brains runs these hospitals.

Well, these committees and reports are just time buying tactics and part of the procedure to bury the hatchet .Rest assured we the common people will forget about such episodes and get busy with more important world cup of cricket sooner than you realize.

Only if I could , I will give a copy of Murphy's law to every government official and frame and put these lines of Hellen keller on every officer's desk