Patients neglected as doctors prioritise OPD duties amid protests

Bengaluru, NT Bureau: Patients in various hospitals across the city were left distressed as doctors prioritised their OPD (outpatient department) duties over attending to critical cases.

Doctors in emergency departments across the country protested on Saturday, with a 24-hour nationwide withdrawal of emergency services starting from midnight.

The IMA has condemned the vandalism at a Kolkata hospital, where doctors have been protesting since August 9 following the rape and murder of a female doctor.

In response to the incident in Kolkata, resident doctors from government hospitals staged a protest here. Hundreds of doctors from various hospitals, including Kidwai, Jayadeva and Bowring hospitals, joined the protest.

Several patients reported being neglected by doctors who were more focused on their scheduled OPD consultations, leading to significant delays in treatment and further neglect of patients in critical condition. As a result, those seeking immediate medical attention experienced severe discomfort and anxiety due to prolonged waiting times.

Most complaints were reported from governmentrun hospitals, which see a high number of patient visits. The primary issue appeared to be the doctors’ overwhelming commitment to their OPD schedules, resulting in very low levels of service.

With the high number of patients, the doctors were reportedly more focused on adhering to their OPD timings, which led to the neglect of those in urgent emergency cases or consultations. One of the affected patients was a pregnant woman, Sarasvati (name changed), in her final trimester and experiencing severe stomach pain.

Despite her and her husband's repeated requests for immediate check-up, no doctor attended to her for hours, worsening her condition, according to her husband at the NR Colony Maternity Home, as he told News Trail.

An elderly man suffering from chronic heart disease also faced neglect. “My father was struggling to breathe and felt like his heart was giving way. The nurses said the doctors were busy with the OPD and that we should wait. He could barely sit up, but no one seemed to care,” his son shared, expressing frustration at Victoria Hospital.

In another case, a young mother named Mala, with a sick child, was left waiting for hours. “My son had high fever, and I was terrified. But the doctors just walked by, saying they were too busy with other patients. We felt so helpless and panicked,” she said at Sanjay Gandhi Hospital.

Similarly, a man named Mohan, with a severe leg injury from a recent accident, was told to wait for hours despite his visible pain. “I could see the doctors walking back and forth, but they didn’t even look in my direction,” he rued.