If the baby was from Valpoi would the Health Minister have been more sensitive?
SUJAY GUPTA
There is a three-week-old baby battling to save his little arm from amputation and possibly his life. He weighs just 600 grams and is in an incubator. He lost his twin brother within six days of their births. While the complications of his premature birth is sheer bad luck, the state of his arm is due to the sheer negligence of the Goa Medical College. A faulty injection jab by a nurse has apparently resulted in less than normal blood supply to his arms, causing a gangrene like condition.
Without getting into the artery by artery details of the baby’s condition, the GMC’s appalling nonchalance needs to be challenged. The GMC and the health minister have to pay for this. And we the people of Goa need to force them to do so. Imagine if this had a happened to your child. Would you have attributed it to a brutal act of providence and let your baby lie to die?
The Dean of GMC Dr V N Jindal turned from “good samaritan” to an unusual insensitive administrator in 24 hours. On January 24 he said that he had formed a team to inquire into the incident and that the GMC would, in all
likelihood look after the baby’s medical treatment including sending him abroad if required. 24 hours later he retorted when asked about the child’s condition. “There are 100 patients in the GMC. I cannot keep track of them individually”.
Dr Jindal, jog your memory. This is the same child who might lose his arm because of the negligence of your staff and it was only a day ago when you even said that the State would pay for his treatment. Why this amnesia? Were you pulled up by the Health Minister for showing heart and asked to go back to a state of general callousness?
And what about the Health Minister? For two days, he has not returned calls and responded to our text messages Would he have shown more heart if the baby’s family were voters of Valpoi? Is that all he cares for now?
Lastly where are we? Where are our crusaders and our activists who fight for causes like the misuse of police vehicles, or against holding wine festivals? And where is the common man — you and me. Doesn’t it matter to us that we should live in a society which is civilized enough not to harm little babies and then do nothing about it?
