CANACONA, MAY 12
Incomplete civic planning has come to the fore along with inadequate facilities at Canacona Community Health Centre at Chaudi, which reportedly compels its staff to tie patients to the beds, sometimes causing torture and even deaths.
According to sources, one Suhas Devidas (36) of Paricoto-Khola was admitted in Canacona CHC for consuming excessive alcohol.
According to sources, since the patient began to behave violently at the withdrawal stage in hospital and finding no attendant of the patient to look after him, the hospital attendants reportedly tied the patient to the bed, fearing that he will jump out through the windows from the second floor male ward.
Sources further informed that the patient expired on Tuesday morning, reportedly still tied up to the bed.
Even though death while tied to the bed may be one of a kind incident, sources informed that this is not an isolated case where CHC hospital staff ties patients, especially alcoholics, to the beds.
Sources informed that fearing abnormal behaviour during withdrawal stage of admitted alcoholics and to stop such patients from jumping through unprotected windows of the second floor, the hospital staff ties patients to the beds.
“It is not that hospital staff is doing these acts out of highhandedness, but for the safety of patients the attending staff has to resort to such acts,” added sources.
“We have highlighted this practical problem to every visiting politician and higher ups, but no one takes any action to install grills to open windows, as many a times patients not in their normal senses attempts to jump out,” informed a nurse who does want to be identified.
Says another hospital attendant: “If such incident happens, then the authorities and politicians will blame hospital staff for being negligible towards patients. So far we have been successful in catching hold of many such persons on time, avoiding fallouts.”
“The intention of the hospital attendants may be need based and good enough, but the acts are sounding like tortures,” remarked a hospital visitor, who reportedly saw Tuesday’s death.
“Patients should be humanly attended after the withdrawal symptoms,” added the visitor.
Added another visitor, “Even today, I saw an alcoholic patient tied to the hospital bed.”
Interestingly, CHC is continuously dubbed as inadequately equipped with medical staff, equipments, facilities and even medicines, thereby causing hardships to patients and visiting patients.
