Srinagar: The JLNM Hospital, Rainawari is turning away critical patients, mostly pregnant women, during late hours, for want of specialist doctors on duty.
According to attendants, pregnant women are worst sufferers because of the lack of specialist doctors in the labour room and other critical areas of the hospital.
“A doctor posted in the labour room of JLNM Hospital denied admission to my wife right away when we moved her there last week,” said Tariq Ahmad Sofi of Safa Kadal.
Ahmad said her wife complained of severe abdominal pain at around 5 pm and the family took her to JLNM hospital, where she had been following her treatment. However, a doctor refused to operate
on her citing absence of a specialist.
“She is registered there and her delivery was expected after two days but the doctors refused to admit her. I had to shift my wife to LD Hospital at night where doctors operated on her next day,” he
told Kashmir Reader.
As per a hospital employee, the administration has failed to update the duty roster of doctors for quite some time.
“There are only two specialist doctors at JLNM Hospital who have an MD in Gynae and Obstetrics. Authorities have not included them in the duty roster for evening and night hours,” he said.
He said the Medical Superintendent of the hospital has kept the two specialists ‘on-call’. However, it’s almost impossible to contact them during emergency at night.
Recently, Kashmir Reader reported about a stillbirth at LD Hospital due to delay and denial of treatment to expecting mother by JLNM Hospital.
Umar Iqbal, a resident of Nigeen locality of Srinagar said that her sister was also denied admission at JLNM Hospital on Saturday evening. The doctors, he said, told the family that the patient had
high BP so it was difficult to give her the treatment.
“My sister’s condition deteriorated due to delay at the hospital. We had to give her two blood pints after doctors at LD Hospital termed her condition critical,” he told Kashmir Reader.
Medical Superintendant, Dr Zakir Khan couldn’t be contacted for the comment.

Manzoor ul-Hassan