MARGAO: Even as the row over the referral of a terminally ill patient to a private hospital by the South Goa district hospital has refused to die down, the Transfer Referral Form clearly shows that the patient was referred to a Margao-based hospital and not to the Goa Medical College and Hospital, Bambolim.
Even present and former health officials in the know questioned how come the patient has been referred to a private hospital when the doctors on duty ought to have mentioned the name of the Goa Medical College and Hospital on the Transfer Referral Form.
Goa Medical College name is mandatory
In fact, a former official told The Goan that whenever a government hospital, including a district hospital, decides to refer any patient out of the hospital for want of treatment facilities, the name of Goa Medical College, Bambolim is mentioned in the Transfer Referral Form. “In the instant case, the name of Goa Medical College, Bambolim does not find mention in the referral form. Instead, the name of the Margao-based hospital is clearly written on the form,” the official asserted.
When his attention was drawn to the clarification issued by District Hospital Medical Superintendent Dr Rajendra Borkar that the district hospital wanted to refer the patient to the GMC, Bambolim but the relatives opted to go to the private hospital, the health official said, “In the normal scheme of things, the district hospital ought to have clearly mentioned in the referral form that the patient is referred to the Goa Medical College and hospital. It is then for the patient to make a call whether to take the patient to the GMC or opt for a private hospital. In the instant case, the name of the private hospital has been mentioned in the referral form.”
The need for ICU
When The Goan brought this point to the notice of a senior South Goa district hospital, the official admitted that the name of GMC ought to have been mentioned in the referral form. “I do not know how the name of the city-based private hospital cropped up in the referral form. But, we had told the relatives that the patient will be referred to the GMC, Bambolim for want of ICU facilities.”
Incidentally, the kin of the lady cancer patient had on Saturday asserted that the district hospital had never given them the Goa Medical College and Hospital option, but were given only two options, both in respect of the Margao-based private hospitals.
A former official pointed out that the Health Director ordered a detailed probe into the episode to unravel the truth and to instill confidence of the common man in the government-run health sector.
Transfer Referal Form | The Goan
