Modern Mortuaries:

December 13/2010: The recent fire at Calcutta’s posh AMRI hospital that took the lives of 91 people, mostly patients, has left the country in a state of shock. The utter callousness of the hospital authorities and the manner in which the accident was handled have made everyone take a relook at public safety and corporate responsibility. Helpless patients did not stand a chance as poisonous fumes engulfed the wards and chambers through the central air-conditioning system. The most shocking was the behavior of the hospital staff who played down the matter only to scamper to safety at the last minute, leaving immobile patients, unable to fend for themselves, die a slow painful choking death. Sadly, the security guards of the hospital, instead of helping the inmates, prevented nearby slum dwellers from entering the premises, whose sole motive was to start a rescue operation. Probably it is the usual anti people attitude of the Indian corporates that was acting up even in this emergency situation. One can see the reflection of this attitude in most expensive private hospitals today. Relatives of patients are treated as security threats, with many rules and restrictions to keep them tame and mortified. This is probably done so that the poor rich friends and relatives surrender themselves completely to not only the doctors but every staff and peon of the hospital and nod their heads in utter submission at every step.

After the tragedy, as is always the case, government has announced a compensation package for the kin of the victims and the directors of the hospital have been arrested. But it can safely be assumed that nothing much would come out of this as in the case of Delhi's Uphaar Cinema hall tragedy where the owner has not even been asked to explain why the fire escape route had been blocked or all the fire-fighting equipment had been removed. The primary motive of every private hospital is obviously money spinning and it is as commercial a venture as mining or any other profiteering scheme. Corporates obviously have no love for service to humanity but opt for hospitals due to growth prospects in the health sector. It is sad to see the same slack attitude and short cuts to profit-making applied to this industry as noticed in every other Indian enterprise. The 'corporate attitude' seems alien here, especially since medicare is directly dealing with the lives of people. The case of the owners of AMRI is very similar. It was enlightening to watch on tv how the directors, after being arrested, alighted from expensive foreign cars for their court appearance. Normal mere mortals would have been manhandled and shoved around by the cops, as is usually observed, when the accused are brought to court in police vans. In our country, rules would obviously be bent when the directors happen to own reputed firms like Emami Group, Transport Corporation of India and also the AMRI chain. All are heavyweights for whom doors of the power corridor open all too easily.

Most people in Orissa would not be aware that the very same AMRI has already started construction of its soon to be launched multi specialty hospital near Khandagiri, Bhubaneswar. The ever growing health sector of Orissa and promise of profits here could surely not have been given a miss by these sharks. Coming to think of it, it would shame the sharks of the oceans to be equated with these death mongers. They kill only in search of food, not profits. The attitude of the owners sinks down to every staff of an organization. In the case of AMRI, every possible rule was flouted and reaction to the accident was criminally delayed, which possibly was the real reason for the loss of so many lives. Inflammable goods were stored in the basement, the most unlikely place for them. Fire alarms were turned off for they caused unnecessary irritation every time someone lighted a cigarette in a No Smoking Area. It is not yet clear if the fire-fighting equipment was adequate or not. In fact, the bare minimum space that is to be left untouched for easy access of fire fighting vehicles around the premises was also encroached upon for various use. But most of all, it was the total lack of concern for the patients and inhuman behavior of the staff that proved the real killer. All this could seem a little familiar to most of us. Patients in other hospitals are definitely equally unsafe. Shopping malls, apartment buildings, schools and office buildings can turn into modern mortuaries any time. This draws attention to one more aspect. We may all stand to blame a little bit for the way things stand today. Most of us hit out viciously when a politician is at fault or the government has faltered somewhere. Yet we are all too forgiving and forgetful in the case of corporates. We do not dare question or expect any kind of responsibility from their side even when we pay through our noses. Most of us do not even bother to check the safety angles when buying an apartment in a 'respectable' complex. We are more concerned with the design of tiles and bathroom fittings to enquire about life saving details. The high society neighborhood address may suffice for most.

At a time when India is being touted as a big medical tourism destination, the AMRI incident sheds light on how irresponsibly that sector has mushroomed. While fancy private hospitals are coming up with impressive structures and a good lineup of equipment, the quality of doctors, technicians and basic safety aspects of patients is often compromised. Anyone who would have had to deal with the unfortunate case of a friend or relative being admitted to one of these hospitals would know all too well how impersonal and inhumane some of them can be. Even in the case of death of a patient, the prime focus of most hospitals is to draw money from sorrow stricken relatives first and talk later. One needs to always keep in mind that while it may seem easy to criticize the government and beat up callous doctors in government run hospitals, these health care institutions might be the only safe option left for an average person in days to come.