Five doctors have been debarred from duty after a woman gave birth to a baby right outside the pediatric ward of Delhi's Safdarjung Hospital on Tuesday, 19 July, as per letters issued by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, accessed by The Quint.
Hours after the video of the incident went viral, a team from the Union Health Ministry visited Safdarjung Hospital for fact-finding, reported ANI. Meanwhile, the Centre-run hospital denied any negligence.
After the probe, letters were issued to a few doctors. The office order, approved by the Medical Superintendent, Dr SV Arya and signed by the additional MS, reads, "It has been brought to the notice of the Safdarjung Hospital and VMMC that a pregnant woman delivered a baby outside the GRR on 19 July, 2022. She was examined by the Senior Resident on duty at 5.45 pm on 18.07.22 in GRR."
It further states, "In view of the above, you are barred from your duties till the finalization of enquiry report or further order."
The hospital said in a statement that the patient was offered admission but did not return with the admission paper.
In the video, the lady is seen giving birth to a child right outside the hospital ward. Another woman can be heard claiming that the pregnant woman was lying outside the hospital the entire night as the doctors did not admit her.
The woman, Poonam, aged 21, was referred from Dadri on 18 July, said the hospital in their statement. By Tuesday afternoon, Poonam had been admitted to the ward. The hospital said that the baby, weighing 1.4 kg, and the mother were both in a stable condition.
Earlier in the day, the Delhi Commission for Women (DCW) too took cognizance of the matter. The hospital, however, said that they have a no-refusal policy.
Ministry Orders Probe
Ministry of Health and Family Welfare officials told ANI, "Five of the doctors have been debarred from duties till a high-level probe into the matter is completed. The lady and the newborn are currently in the care of the SJH hospital."
Soon after this, letters were issued to the doctors who were present at the time. While five doctors have been debarred, others have received a show-cause notice.
Hospital Says They Follow a‘No-Refusal’ Policy
The hospital maintained that Poonam had been examined on Monday evening.
“As Safdarjung Hospital has a no refusal policy, she was examined by the SR (senior resident) on duty at 5:45 pm on 18.07.22 and her condition was found to be 33+6 weeks gestation with preeclampsia in early labour. The patient was offered admission but she did not return with the admission paper," the statement read.
It further said, “The next day, senior resident on morning GRR (gynae receiving room) duty was informed that a patient was delivering outside. A team from GRR was dispatched immediately and the patient's delivery was taken care of.”
The hospital said that there are six doctors, including two senior doctors, in the GRR.
DCW Issues Notice To Hospital
The DCW asked the hospital to provide them with a detailed action report, the reasons if any for refusal for her admission, a copy of an inquiry report on the matter, and a copy of the standard operating protocol for when a patient is in a state of emergency. They also asked for details of the staff responsible for the negligence and the date and time of when she was first admitted as well as since when she had been lying outside the hospital.
DCW Chief Swati Maliwal said, “Such incidents where even reputed government hospitals deny admission and care to critical patients break the trust of common people in the public healthcare system. I have issued a notice to Safdarjung hospital and have asked the hospital authorities to fix accountability in the matter. The incident is shameful and urgent steps must be taken to ensure action against the negligent officers and to rectify the situation so that it is never repeated again."
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