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Long wait at Pune’s Sassoon hosp causes inconvenience to mental hosp patients
Patients are made to wait for long hours.The situation is challenging when patients taken for treatment are violent and aggressive
Several inmates from Regional Mental Hospital (RMH) in Yerawada are facing inconvenience while seeking treatment at the BJ Medical College and Sassoon General Hospital (SGH) for other illnesses. Authorities at RMH have decided to meet the dean of BJMC to highlight the issue and request a solution for the problem, said officials on Wednesday.
According to RMH officials, several patients are regularly taken to the SGH for health illnesses. However, these patients are made to wait for long hours, even at midnight.The situation is challenging when patients taken for treatment are violent and aggressive.
A senior official from RMH requesting anonymity said, “Patients from RMH have several medical issues like hypertension, diabetes, renal diseases and regular health illness and they are taken to SGH. For one patient a team of four—attendant, nurse, cleaner and driver have to be assigned in one shift. The staff has to be appointed in three different shifts. However, the patients have to wait for long hours and even till late at night making it difficult for the staff to handle them.”
Dr HS Gosavi, RMH medical superintendent, “Every month around 150 patients are taken to SGH. We understand that SGH is overcrowded with patients, but the inmates from RMH have to be given some priority. In comparison to the other patients, the inmates are aggressive, violent and even have suicidal tendencies. Due to this, the patients need attention round the clock.”
Dr Gosavi, further, said, when a patient is admitted at SGH, as many as 12 staff for one patient has to be assigned in three different shifts for one patient. “It becomes difficult for us to manage when multiple patients are admitted to different wards. We will meet and write to the SGH dean to have a special window for our inmates. Also, if one ward can be kept for our patients we can manage a smaller number of staff,” she added.
Dr Sanjeev Thakur, dean BJMC and SGH said, “Setting up a separate window at SGH for the RMH inmates is difficult looking at the huge number of patients. I will look into the issue and see what can be done. Once the new building is developed we can consider having a separate ward for RMH inmates. Meanwhile, we can have a couple of days with dedicated time during which the patients from the mental hospital can be given priority for treatment.”
