Critical patients are forced to fly out of Patna if surgeries turn a bit complex though the government claimed many a time that the state capital is the new health destination.

Surgeries like liver or kidney transplant are still not possible in Patna and patients have to go to metropolitan cities or other places such as Chennai or Vellore. It draws a close comparison to the thousands of students who are forced to migrate to other states every year to pursue higher studies owing to lack of opportunities in Bihar.

Rajiv Ranjan Prasad, the president-elect of the state chapter of Indian Medical Association (IMA), admitted that the state capital lacks facilities to treat stem cell therapy, bone marrow replacement and different kind of organ transplants.

“Stem cell therapy is very useful in the surgical trials of diabetes as well as in cancer treatment. Bone marrow transplant is used in the treatment of diseases like blood cancer. Organ transplantation is available nowhere in Patna, be it of cornea, liver or kidney. It also does not have any virology laboratory, while the one at Darbhanga is not in good shape. So, patients suffering from viral diseases in the state have to live in uncertainty. Total separation of blood cannot be done here.”

Prasad said vertebrae collapse surgery and advanced retina laser therapy are not available in Patna.

“Though some private practitioners claim that facilities like total knee and total hip replacement surgeries are available at their nursing homes but for this they call doctors from outside the state. These treatments are not done on a regular basis at their clinic,” he said.

Diwakar Tejaswi, another city-based prominent physician, said patients who go to avail these treatments in other states end up shelling out extra money.

“One has to spend anything between Rs 5 lakh and Rs 7 lakh on kidney transplantation outside the state. The person can save around Rs 1.5 lakh if he/she does not have to pay on transportation and accommodation,” said Tejaswi.

He added that people from the state have to go to places like Hyderabad, Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore and Vellore for these treatments.

Tejaswi said brain surgery with gamma knife and capsule endoscopy are also not done in the city.

“With the help of gamma knife, micro cutting can be done. Brain surgeries, which are complicated in nature, are not possible without gamma knife. In Patna, only upper endoscopy is done which can help detect haemorrhage in the upper gastrointestinal tract, while capsule endoscopy helps detect the haemorrhage from the upper portion to the lower portion of gastrointestinal tract,” said Tejaswi.

Vyasji, principal secretary, health, said specialised treatment would be available at Jay Prabha Hospital in Kankerbagh.

“We have decided to upgrade this hospital into a superspeciality one on public-private partnership mode. All treatment which you are talking would be available there.”

Shweta Singh, (23) a resident of Kidwaipuri, said: “We had to take our uncle to All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Delhi, for kidney transplant because the treatment was not available in Bihar.”

Singh’s mother, Archana, said: “My husband had to take seven days’ leave. On rejoining office, he had to face many problems because of pending work. Had the treatment been available here, we could have saved a lot of time and money.”

A doctor at Patna Medical College and Hospital said: “The latest line of treatment is not available in Patna. The government needs to make more effort to start these facilities here.”