Thalassery: The paediatric ICU (intensive care unit) at Thalassery General Hospital in Kannur district has been shut following seepage. Currently, only a limited number of children are being admitted to the wards.

The issues started after September 10 last year, when the roofs of several hospital buildings, including the children’s ward, were blown away in a gale. The paediatric ICU was closed on May 25, when the leakage became unmanageable. The expensive devices in the ICU, including monitors, are now covered with plastic sheets and kept outside the building.

Meanwhile, the hospital is witnessing an increase in the arrival of children suffering from diseases such as diarrhoea, jaundice and dengue fever, even from the hilly regions of the district. However, these patients are being referred to the District Hospital and various medical colleges.

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The gale had destroyed the middle portion of the asbestos sheet roof of the children’s ward. The next day itself, the hospital authorities urged the government to sanction funds from the disaster management authority to replace the roof. However, they were told that funds could not be provided for government buildings. The ICU was closed as no funds were sanctioned even after nine months.

Hospital superintendent Dr V K Rajeevan said that the municipality has now sanctioned ₹30 lakh to replace the roof. “The estimate has been prepared and the work will start soon,” he said.

At the same time, patients belonging to poor and lower middle-class families who depend on the hospital demanded alternate arrangements as the work would be delayed in view of the rains.

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Fees imposed
Another problem haunting patients visiting the hospital is lack of free treatment. The fee for an OP (out-patient) ticket is ₹10, while ₹3 has to be paid to use the urinal and ₹5 for the washroom. The fee for bathing is ₹ 10.

Hospital authorities explained that the fees are being collected as the washrooms were renovated by a voluntary organisation and tenders issued to manage the daily operations. The income received as fees is necessary to meet the expenses for cleaning, including wages for staff, they added. A visitor’s fee of ₹10 is also charged to meet patients.

In the past, the hospital was considered a refuge for poor patients seeking free treatment. But now, the authorities are introducing fees for more and more services, said the patients. “Fees are being charged for several services which were earlier offered free of cost at the hospital. Collecting fees for even using the washroom cannot be justified. We will stage a women’s protest against such arrangements,” said A Sharmila, vice-president of Mahila Congress district committee.

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Incidentally, various youth organisations, which earlier staged protests against such fees, are now generally quiet. In response, the hospital authorities said that the amount received as fees is utilized for developmental activities at the institution.

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