Hospital sealing: Doctors meet civic chief

Hospital sealing: Doctors meet civic chief

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Ahmedabad:08.09.2021

A delegation of 60 medical personnel, including doctors of 42 aggrieved hospitals that were sealed by the civic body for lack of building use permission, met municipal commissioner Mukesh Kumar on Tuesday. The delegation highlighted how hundreds of patients will suffer and may face complications availing of medical insurances for no fault of theirs.

Among the delegation that met Kumar was former Ahmedabad Medical Association (AMA) president Mona Desai. “We have only requested that all be treated equal before law. We have instances where many commercial units, including hotels, continue to function in the same commercial building where hospitals have been sealed for lack of BU permission. Ahead of the third wave, many mid-size and small hospitals that played a pivotal role during the pandemic will be forced to close. There are an estimated 40,000 clinics and hospitals without BU permission across nagarpalikas and villages in Gujarat,” said Desai.

Dr Nilesh Shah pointed out how smaller hospitals, which form the bulk of Covid healthcare inventory in the city, will suffer. Of the 700 clinics and small hospitals in the city, nearly 60 per cent were designated as Covid hospitals. “We shall abide by the law, but our only petition is that it should be equitably implemented, be it hospital, commercial unit, office or residence.”

Other doctors also pointed out how the withdrawal of C-forms on Monday has put hundreds of patients in a fix. “Many will be shifted in 2-3 days to other hospitals. Following the withdrawal of forms, medical insurance companies can cause problems for patients,” they said.

A delegation including doctors of 42 hospitals met AMC chief Mukesh Kumar at Riverfront House on Tuesday