HC: Go extra mile to treat every patient having Covid symptoms

MUMBAI: Ramesh Ghaderao, 49, an employee of the law and judiciary department, Mantralaya, succumbed to the Covid-19 infection on April 16, leaving behind his wife and two minor children. Though Ghaderao tested negative in the RT-PCR test, he underwent a CT scan the very next day. The report showed that he was suffering from 92% of Covid-19 lung infection. However, the Covid hospital refused to admit him, on the grounds that he had tested negative in the RT-PCR test. After much coaxing and pleading, Ghaderao was finally admitted to a Covid centre at Thane. However, it was too late and he passed away the same day.

In light of the incident, a petition was filed by advocate Wilson Jaiswal in the Bombay high court (HC) on April 26, seeking directions to the authorities to issue orders to hospitals and dedicated Covid centres not to insist on positive RT-PCR reports for getting admitted.

On May 12, the division bench of chief justice Dipankar Datta and justice Girish Kulkarni, while hearing the petition, was informed by advocates Shekhani Shah, Satyaram Gaud and Rohan Khandelwal for petitioner that like Ghaderao, Covid patients were being turned away by hospitals and centres for want of an RT-PCR positive report. Advocates submitted that as CT scan report was accurate hospitals should be directed to accept it.

The bench was also informed by the state that the Centre, through the ministry of health and family welfare, had issued guidelines in that regard on May 8 and the state would be issuing orders accordingly.

On May 19 and 20, additional government pleader Geeta Shastri informed the court that on May 17 the state government had issued orders to hospitals and Covid centres to admit patients showing symptoms and had also ordered setting up of three types of wards for such patients.

“It can never be conceived that any person who has developed any symptoms without any reason would approach for getting admitted in a hospital or medical centre,” court said. The bench opined that medical fraternity should go extra mile and attend to every possible patient who would have Covid symptoms and provide treatment.