At RG Kar Medical College and Hospital, several basic services for patients are either missing or in disrepair.
The washrooms are not just locked; those that remain open are dirty and barely usable. Stretchers are often unavailable, and even when they are, attendants to assist patients are missing. The number of seats in the OPD is far too low.
On Monday, 61-year-old Biswajit Samanta, who had gone to RG Kar with symptoms of bleeding from the nose and mouth, died after doctors allegedly asked him to walk about 50 metres to a pay-and-use toilet on the premises.
On Tuesday, Samanta’s family lodged a complaint at Tala police station, demanding an investigation. The hospital principal had set up a five-member fact-finding team on Monday to inquire into the incident and submit a report within 72 hours.
Unusable washrooms
The toilets in the hospital’s OPD building are practically defunct: many lack door locks, and some doors are completely broken. The stench is so overpowering that even
approaching the facilities is difficult.
Patients and their families complained that waste remains strewn across floors, which are frequently flooded.
“I have often seen garbage bags lying in the washroom. It is very smelly, and if a patient is taken there, they could become sicker,” said Gayatri Biswas, who had accompanied her 60-year-old mother to the pulmonology OPD on Tuesday.
Biswas said she has been visiting the hospital for the past year, as her mother underwent two surgeries, including a tumour operation in February. “Even the washrooms in the wards are dirty and stink. Many times, I had to use the pay-and-use toilet because I could not bring myself to use the ward or OPD washrooms,” she said.
A woman in her 20s described similar conditions in a ground-floor washroom. She said the stench spread into the corridor, with waterlogged floors and no proper doors. “The foul smell reaches the OPD units and spreads across the corridors,” she said.
In the emergency ward, only one washroom is functional, reserved for doctors, nurses and staff. Another has been locked due to leakage.
Stretcher access
Patients’ families alleged that stretchers and wheelchairs are often unavailable, resulting in long waits and sometimes leaving patients to move without assistance.
Gautam Singh, 34, who brought his 69-year-old uncle to the cardiology OPD on Tuesday, said they waited nearly an hour for a stretcher. “We reached around 12.30pm and kept waiting. My uncle has severe chest pain,” he said, shortly after finally getting one.
Others reported being unable to access wheelchairs altogether.
Kalyan Jha, 23, who suffered fractures in an accident on Tuesday morning, had to walk for about 10 minutes to reach the X-ray unit. His mother, Sima Jha, said they arrived at the trauma unit at 10am and were advised to get the X-ray done after first aid.
“We tried to get a wheelchair, but the counter staff said none were available,” she said. Kalyan was still bleeding and unable to walk properly. “It would have been much easier if we had a wheelchair,” Sima said.
Seating shortage
The OPD sees thousands of patients daily, but there are only a few dozen chairs available. Many, including the elderly and frail, are left without seating.
“During OPD hours, there is hardly any place to sit or even stand. People are forced to wait in congested and uncomfortable spaces,” said a woman at the orthopaedic OPD on Tuesday.
Patients travelling from distant areas were seen waiting outside, spreading newspapers or plastic sheets on the ground.
The shortage of space also affects families of admitted patients. Sagar Mistri, 49, who suffered fractures in both legs after a fall earlier this week, is admitted to the trauma care unit. His family, who travelled from Burdwan, has been staying at the hospital since then.
“There is no proper waiting space outside the ward. The designated area is small and covered only by a shade. With so many families staying overnight, most of us sleep on the ground using mats or cloth,” said his son, Soumen Mistri.
Calls to Saptarshi Chatterjee, the medical superintendent and vice-principal of RG Kar Medical College and Hospital, went unanswered on Tuesday.