Delhi: Kidney patient ‘ousted’ from Lok Nayak Hospital, dies

NEW DELHI: A 35-year-old kidney patient from Old Delhi, who was admitted at Lok Nayak Hospital a few days ago, was suddenly asked to leave on Tuesday because the facility, which has been designated a Covid-19 centre, had to make space for patients suspected or suffering from novel coronavirus.


The woman’s family alleged that they weren’t provided an ambulance or alternative arrangement to shift the patient to another hospital. They ran around on their own and when they couldn’t get her admitted elsewhere, they took her back home where she breathed her last on Wednesday morning. “Shahjahan passed away at 7am,” the 35-year-old’s relative, Mohammad Khalid, told TOI. He claimed that the woman was on ventilator support because she had breathing difficulty too.

“The hospital didn’t listen to our requests. They simply asked us to take her to Safdarjung Hospital. We booked a private ambulance to take her there, but Safdarjung Hospital also denied admission. We then went to AIIMS and Guru Teg Bahadur (GTB) Hospital, but even they refused to admit her. Finally, we brought her back home where she died,” Khalid alleged.

Dr JC Passey, Lok Nayak medical director, denied any knowledge of this incident. He, however, clarified that around 800 patients admitted under various departments of the hospital were discharged over the past two weeks because the hospital was being turned into a Covid-19 centre.

“We told all patients to go to GTB Hospital and some of them have been admitted there,” Passey said. Lok Nayak has more than 2,000 beds, which are always full.

Recently, in the wake of the Covid-19 outbreak and arrangements made thereof for quarantine and isolation of suspected as well as confirmed cases, the hospital suspended all elective surgeries and restricted the OPD service.

“Some of the admitted patients, who were waiting for surgery, were told to come once the Covid-19 crisis was over. Others continued to stay. However, they were discharged when it was decided to turn Lok Nayak into a dedicated facility for Covid-19 treatment,” said a senior doctor.

Public health activist and advocate Ashok Agarwal said it was inhuman to discharge admitted patients without any preparedness. “The hospital should have at the least made arrangement for transfer and ensured a bed for them at an alternative facility before discharging them,” he added. While it is important to make arrangement for Covid-19, he said, the other patients cannot be left to die.

Sources said many patients admitted at GB Pant Hospital, another super-specialty hospital run by the state government that has been designated for treatment of Covid-19 cases, have also been discharged over the past few days. “GB Pant Hospital has around 800 beds. At present, only about 50 patients are admitted in the hospital. Even they have been told to make alternative arrangements. The hospital is trying to help them,” said an official.