Lift failure, no ACs: At Delhi's GTB Hospital, patients and doctors suffer amid infra crisis
Last week, doctors at Guru Teg Bahadur (GTB) Hospital were forced to reschedule two surgeries as patients could not be brought up to the operation theatre (OT).
Hospital staff had to carry a dead patient's body on their shoulders to the ground floor.
The reason? Non-functional lifts at the hospital, one of the Delhi government's biggest facilities.
The issue came to light after officials from the hospital raised the matter with the Public Works Department (PWD) to repair the lifts.
According to doctors from the hospital, the lifts remain dysfunctional most of the time, causing trouble for patients, doctors and staff. 'This is not new. We often face this issue where the lifts don't work and are very slow. We have seven lifts — at a time, only two or three work, and, sometimes, even they go out of service,' said a senior resident doctor from the hospital.
He said that recently, a patient had to stay outside the OT for 12 hours post-operation because the lift was not working, and he could not be shifted to the ward. 'When he became mobile, he walked on his own and was shifted to the ward,' the doctor claimed.
The Indian Express visited the hospital on Wednesday to take stock of the situation and found that five lifts were not working, including in the casualty, OPD, and ward block.
The six-floor hospital with 1,000 beds sees approximately 6,000 patients per day.
The hospital has operation theatres on multiple floors, making it a task for doctors and staff to move surgery patients due to dysfunctional lifts. The doctor quoted above added that those who come in for an emergency face a tough time when in need of surgery.
'The lifts are dysfunctional in multiple wards, including casualty, OPD and ward blocks. Sometimes, when they work, they don't stop on all floors,' he said.
A senior doctor, on condition of anonymity, said so far, no repairs have been made to resolve the issue. 'The concerns are genuine and need attention,' he said.
Another issue was air conditioners at the hospital — they were either not working or were not available in several wards.
'Patients have to stay in the wards in a miserable condition with just a fan in such hot weather,' said a doctor deployed on ward duty. In wards 17 and 24, patients were seen using hand fans.
For the past week, the city has experienced heatwave conditions, with temperatures over 40 degrees Celsius, which are likely to persist in parts of Delhi till June 14. Isolated areas in the city have already experienced four consecutive days of a heatwave.
Anil Gosain (48), who has been admitted to the hospital after a leg injury, said it is becoming unbearable for him to stay in Ward No. 17. 'There is no cooler or AC… we asked the nurse but they said nothing can be done,' he added, as he sits with a plastered right leg.
Before this, Anil was taken to another ward where a dessert cooler was functional, but he was shifted to this ward later.
Vinod Kumar (48), whose wife was admitted to the ward after a kidney stone surgery, said even water has to be brought from outside as there is no drinking water facility in the ward despite the heat. 'In this temperature, there is no AC or cooler or even drinking water. I am trying to take my wife home as soon as possible,' he said.
Earlier in March, Chief Minister Rekha Gupta conducted a surprise inspection at the hospital in East Delhi and questioned the health model of the previous government.
Gupta claimed the facility has turned into a 'dumping ground' with 'unused medical equipment' and 'incomplete hospital infrastructure'.
GTB Hospital officials remained unavailable for comment.
Naveen Chaudhary, Additional Chief Secretary, PWD, said that he is not aware of the complaint and that he will look into it.
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