Surgeries delayed over laundry

Congress party corporator in BMC, Ashraf Azmi from Kurla West ward, has complained to the additional municipal commissioner of health, Idzes Kundan, about surgeries being delayed at civic hospitals.

He has alleged operations are delayed as fresh laundry is not provided to these hospitals every day. “Since dirty laundry is not returned on the same day but after 10 to 12 days, nonavailability of clean gowns for doctors leads to delay in operations,” his complaint states.However, Avinash Supe, BMC’s director of medical education and medical health, said, “I have received the corporator’s complaint and the AMC has also asked me to look into the matter. The complaint only pertains to Sion Hospital, not to all municipal hospitals. We will resolve the issue at the earliest."BMC’s health department usually undertakes laundering of 50 per cent of hospital clothes while the remaining 50 per cent is given to a private contractor. Azmi said that when he asked the private laundry contractor why they fail to return washed laundry on a daily basis, he was told they faced a manpower shortage. As a result, they only return 7,000 pieces of laundry instead of the stipulated14,000 pieces of laundered clothes to hospitals

daily. “In July 2017, the contract of Central Laundry expired. But even today, the health department continues to send its dirty laundry to the same contractor without having renewed their tenure. An inquiry should be conducted, to nab those civic officials working hand-in-glove with the contractor,” said Azmi in his complaint."Central Laundry says it needs 83 more workers in order to deliver. Of the total 10 machines in the laundry, only eight are in good condition. Yet the BMC has continued giving laundry work to this contractor, which must cause brows to be raised. An indepth inquiry should be conducted,” he said.