A week after taking charge as a dean of state-run Sir Jamshedji Jeejeebhoy (JJ) hospital, Dr Pallavi Saple bans the entry of private laboratory people. The dean has also put up stickers across the campus and inside the hospital to convey the message. While speaking to FPJ, Dr Saple said the step was taken after she came to know that many patients are referred outside for diagnostic tests.
Dr Saple took the charge of dean in 2019 because of Covid she was sent to Malegaon for handling the Covid crisis at the beginning of the pandemic. Last week she again took charge as dean of JJ hospital.
Dr Saple said she learned that many basic tests are not done at the hospital and patients have been asked to get them done in private. Following this many private partners conduct a round of hospital hunting for such patients who want to get the test done.
"I need to sort out several issues of the hospital, of which conducting basic tests at the hospital is the priority. Following this, she directed all the doctors to pass an order that none of the private lab and medical practitioners should be entertained on the hospital premises. We will see that none of our patients must go outside for a common or another test that is available in our hospital,” she said.
Shweta Singh, a patient relative has been asked to take the prescription of blood tests and give it to a person standing outside JJ hospital gate who will get it done at a private laboratory and give the report.
“Last month in March I had admitted my uncle to the emergency ward as he met with a bike accident following which the doctor prescribed me CBC, HIV and HBa1 tests and told me these tests will not be done in the hospital. He asked me to go outside the hospital and show the prescription to the people standing who will take the sample to the private lab and will give the reports. However, when I asked will I get a hard copy of the report to which he replied it will be sent to the doctor on WhatsApp,” she said.
Another patient who had come to the hospital for routine checkups and blood tests last week was also asked to get those tests from outside. “I was confused at that time then a doctor told me to wait outside the OPD and one of his staff accompanied me. Then we met a private lab employee who used to roam in and around the hospital,” said Ramesh Jain.
A senior doctor from the hospital said this issue has been going on over the years and patients admitted in the evening are asked to get their blood tests done from private laboratories. Tests such as simple tests such as Complete Blood Count, Lipid Panel or HB1AC are not done in the hospital due to which some practitioners have joined hands with private labs and sent their patients for tests.
“It has been more than years since many patients and their relatives have been exploited and were referred to private diagnostic laboratories by hospital staff, for most basic diagnostic tests and forced to incur additional expenses, the dean has pulled up the in-house laboratory for not being able to perform,” he said.
