Following slab collapse at Mumbai's KEM, activists stress on the need to strengthen peripheral hospitals

Barely a month after a man was sucked into the MRI machine at Nair Hospital, four patients had a narrow escape in KEM Hospital on Wednesday night. The plaster of the ceiling collapsed while the patients were undergoing for dialysis.

Following this, activists as well as union leader of medical staff raised safety concerns of patients and staffs in civic-run hospitals.

Swati Patil, an activist, said it seems that hospital administration did not learn a lesson from past incidents. "There is a need to strengthen peripheral and primary health centres to release pressure of KEM-like hospitals, which caters to patients with chronic diseases and emergency cases," she said.

Patil added that she has been raising the issue for a long time, but the civic administration has not paid any heed.

Trishala Kamble, General secretary of Nursing and Para-medical staffs of KEM, said, "The old as well as the new building are in a pathetic condition." She added that construction work has been going on at the hospital for very long, and conditions don't seem to change. "All civic-run hospitals in the city are in a similar state. KEM is no exception," added Kamble.

Sources said KEM Hospital has a vacancy of over 40 per cent in medical and other departments. "Due to the scarcity of doctors and other medical staff, medical services are often compromised," said a senior member of the Mumbai Mazdoor Union. He added that the medical staff are perpetually overburdened.