Mumbai: Show-cause notice gives doctor 24 hours to reply

The Chief Civil Surgeon of the Central Ulhasnagar Hospital Thane Dr Manohar Bansode has issued showcause notice on Friday to Dr Kasam Dalwai a gynaecologist at the hospital for allegedly refusing to deliver the baby of a woman from the adivasi community The notice gives Dalwai 24 hours to file a reply The letter also states ldquoIt should be noted that if the disclosure is not received within the prescribed period disciplinary action will be proposed against yourdquoAfter two governmentrun hospitals refused to help the pregnant woman who then delivered a stillborn baby in a private ambulance on March 20 several questions have been raised about medical services provided by such hospitals in Karjat and Ulhasnagar midday visited both hospitals to find the reason behind the incident and learnt that things were not running smoothly midday found gross lack of infrastructure and manpowerSangeeta who lost her baby and her mother Kamli BaiThe incidentOn Thursday midday visited the house of the woman in Laakhyachiwadi Adivasi pada which is 15 km to 16 km from Karjat station midday also visited the Karjat Subdistrict Hospital and Central Hospital Ulhasnagar and stayed till evening to observe the services provided to patients While speaking to midday victim Sangeeta Pawar 30 said ldquoOn March 20 morning my husband Vithal took me to the Subdistrict government hospital at Karjat after I experienced pain We reached the hospital around 9 am and the doctor there examined me and said the baby had passed stool inside the womb and they would have to operate The doctor said the baby might need to be kept in a NICU and they didnrsquot have the facility They referred us to Ulhasnagar government hospitalrdquoAlso read Mumbai Crime Man who lsquomolestedrsquo woman at Bandra pub nabbed in JaipurldquoAround 1030 am a government ambulance came and at around 12 pm we reached the Ulhasnagar hospital in it There the doctor saw the referral paper and admitted me After that around 5 pm the doctor told us to move to a government hospital at Kalwa without stating the reason As I was in pain my husband begged the doctor to deliver the baby there but the doctors refused and told us to leave My husband called the 108 ambulance at around 530 pm but when it did not come till 8pm my husband requested one Mahesh Gangavane there to provide a private ambulance As we were heading towards Kalwa hospital around 830pm I delivered in the ambulance but my baby was not aliverdquo she addedThe Karjat hospital where Sangeeta first wentPawarrsquos mother Kambli Bai said ldquoMy daughter suffered for 12 hours but couldnrsquot get treatment at both hospitals due to lack of infrastructure We donrsquot have money to go to a private hospital What we want is action against both the hospitals and administration We want better facilities at rural hospitals so no one else suffers our faterdquoNo NICU no anaesthetistThe 50bed Subdistrict hospital at Karjat has no infrastructure limited resources and few doctors A doctor there said ldquoWe donrsquot have an NICU but we perform both normal and Caesarean deliveries Our anaesthetist has been deputed to an Alibag hospital and here on call anaesthetists come only after 5pm and not even during emergencies We do not have resources and experts in a tough situation If a patient is critical then without wasting time we refer them to a higher centrerdquoA local resident said there are very few facilities at the hospital ldquoEven for a sonography we have to go to a private health centrerdquoWhile speaking to midday Dr Manoj Bansode at the Karjat Subdistrict Hospital said they donrsquot have an anaesthetist and other experts He said ldquoOur doctor attended to the patient There was a risk to the baby and he immediately transferred the woman to the higher center at Ulhasnagar for treatment without wasting time We have also sent a proposal 6 months back to make a 100bedded hospital here so that we can get more doctorsrdquoWhen midday visited the state governmentrun Central Hospital at Ulhasnagar a senior official there said ldquoThe day on which the victim came was the last day of strike for the old pension scheme So staff was not present This could be one of the reasons she was asked to move to the Kalwa hospitalrdquoBut many local residents complained that for the past few days most of the patients were transferred to Kalwa by the hospital Shiv Sena MLA from Karjat Constituency Mahendra Thorve said ldquoWe will seek the details and I will also speak to the local hospital authorities about the lapses The matter should be investigatedrdquo