By IANS,
Bhopal : Private hospitals and nursing homes here Monday went on a strike to protest against the ransacking of Hajela hospital by a mob led by irate relatives of a patient who died in the hospital.
The deceased, Ramji Kushwaha, was undergoing treatment at the Hajela hospital for head injuries he had sustained during a fall a few days ago. He succumbed to his injuries Sunday.
The family members alleged that Kushwaha lost his life due to the negligence of the hospital staff. They vandalized the hospital when asked to clear the bills before taking the body.
Though the police prevented the situation from going out of hand and registered a case on the complaint of the hospital authorities, the Private Nursing Home Association decided not to admit new patients from Monday until the accused were arrested.
The owner of Hajela hospital, Dr Anoop Hajela, is the president of the Bhopal Chapter of the Madhya Pradesh Nursing Home Association (MPNHA).
There are about 120 private nursing homes and hospitals and 80 diagnostic centres in the state capital which has about 1,000 practicing doctors and 3,000 to 4,000 new arrivals on an average every day.
“We are on an indefinite strike and no new patients would be given admission in any of the private nursing homes till the arrests are made,” MPNHA Secretary Dr Umesh Sharda said.
“All private nursing homes, X-Ray units, Diagnostic centres, pathology laboratories, CT Scan centres and other private medical facilities have gone on an immediate strike following the incident at Hajela hospital. However, the patients already admitted would continue to get required treatment as usual,” Dr Sharda told IANS.
“We would also meet the collector and submit a memorandum demanding the arrest of the accused,” Dr Sharda stated, adding, “we will resume work as soon as the accused, who have been identified and named in the police complaint, are arrested.”