Patients’ kin from remote areas of Madhya Pradesh sleep under trees and on the pavement

Patients’ kin from remote areas of Madhya Pradesh sleep under trees and on the pavement

Hotels, private lodges are shut due to the lockdown.

ANKITA ANANDUpdated: Saturday, April 17, 2021, 12:46 AM IST
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One of the families under a tree in Bhopal. | FPJ

Bhopal: Many patients from far-flung areas in MP have been admitted to different hospitals in the state capital in view of covid-19. The relatives of those patients are left with no choice but to stay outside the hospital premises, since the hotels and dharamshalas have downed their shutters. So, all corona protocols have gone haywire.

The kin of patients from remote areas are spotted under trees, on pavements, in the hospital lobby or its verandahs. Despite fears of coronavirus infection, many have also braved a stay on the street with other local dwellers and have made constant rounds to and from to care to their loved ones.

Jai Prakash, who hails from Jaisinagar, came to Bhopal for a cardiac operation of his father. He admitted his father at a private multi-specialty hospital in the capital city. Since it is known for its multi-specialty services, hundreds of patients from across remote parts of the state and outside visit the facility for different kinds of medical aid all the year round.

All the beleaguered kin of patients, who are already facing untold hardships, have to suffer further due to the lackadaisical attitude of the hospital administration. The hospitals have a separate space for the attendants of the patients, but, given the corona situation, the facilities are occupied. The hospitals prefer not to keep the attendants inside the premises due to the fear of corona infection.

Patients' relatives find temporary resting places.

Patients' relatives find temporary resting places. | FPJ

Jai Prakash said the hotels and Dharmshalas are also shut because of which they do not have anywhere to go. He said his father was scheduled for the surgery on April 20. He had taken the appointment two months ago. But the unprecedented surge in covid-19 cases has created a lot of troubles. There are no means of transportation available too, he said. He and his father are equally stressed that there was nobody at home and his farms were not being looked after as it was the harvest season, he added.

A 17-year-old girl, Titli, sat 500 metres away from Hamidia hospital. She has come from Piparia with her grandfather who has been afflicted with corona. He parents died in an accident a few years ago and her grandmother also died of corona in the first wave. She said her grandfather was admitted at a community heath centre, where the doctors referred him to Hamidia. Titli said while there was no lcokdown, she begged on streets to get some food for and money for the medicines for her grandfather. But she does not even have that option now, she said. She is forced to spend her entire day outdoors, whatever the weather may be, she said.

At night, she tries to take shelter under a tree on a sheet she brought from home. Titli said the scorching heat would burn her skin during the daytime, while mosquitoes would bite it off during the night. But she cannot go back without her grandfather fully recovering.

The patients from remote areas are mostly referred to Hamidia and AIIMS Bhopal due to the lack of facilities and specialists.

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