The empty OPD at Rajendra Nagar Hospital on Tuesday. Picture by Ranjeet Kumar Dey

Patna, May 31: Private clinics today cashed in on the sufferings of patients, as around 4,000 medics, including 1,600 contractual doctors, went on a token strike to protest against the murder of Dr Budhadeo Singh at Gopalganj jail.

The rush of patients at the outpatient departments (OPDs) in the government hospitals was less because the news of the strike had spread. A large number of patients were seen thronging the clinics in Kankerbagh, Boring Road, Boring Canal Road and Kadamkuan areas, where a number of private practitioners have set up their health establishments.

While most of the OPD patients managed to bypass the brunt of the strike by going to the private clinics, those admitted to the government hospitals suffered.

“There are seven primary health centres in the Patna urban area. All of them were crippled because of the strike. There were no doctors to attend to the patients admitted there. Only nurses were there to treat them,” a senior health department officer said.

Gardiner Hospital near the Income Tax roundabout wore a deserted look during the OPD hours. A doctor in the hospital, Manoj Kumar, who refused to see any patient in the hospital today, told The Telegraph: “There are seven doctors in this six-bed facility. We will all be present here according to our shift but will avoid attending to patients. This is a way of showing protest against the government apathy towards our fraternity.”

Sources in the hospital said about 350-400 patients come to the OPD of the hospital everyday. But the number of patients dropped to a fourth today. The situation was same at Rajvanshi Nagar Hospital, a 24-bed facility.

The patients going to the OPD of the Rajendra Nagar Hospital claimed that the doctors’ strike was unjustified.

“Their protest against the death of one of their colleagues is legitimate but they should not go on strike in public interest. There are many poor patients like me who cannot afford expensive treatment at private hospitals. I will have to come to the hospital tomorrow again with my son, suffering from diarrhoea,” Shashi Shekhar said.

Majula Singh, another patient at the hospital, said: “The government should make alternative arrangements for situations like this.”

The OPD of Patna Medical College and Hospital (PMCH) and Nalanda Medical College and Hospital (NMCH) — the two major healthcare centres in the capital — also saw very few patients.

“There was less than usual rush even in the emergency. Many people thought the medical colleges would also be affected by the strike,” a junior doctor on duty at PMCH’s emergency ward, said.

Indira Gandhi Institute of Medical Sciences (IGIMS), a government-run health centre that provides paid services, portrayed a contrasting picture. It saw a huge rush of patients.

“There was about 20 per cent increase in the number of patients in the OPD as well as the emergency. Not a single doctor is on strike,” Dr Arun Kumar, director, IGIMS, said.