Southern States - Andhra Pradesh-Hyderabad   

NIMS apologises to patient

By Our Staff Reporter

HYDERABAD Nov. 25. The Nizam's Institute of Medical Sciences (NIMS) here has apologised for the inconvenience caused to a patient with cleft lip problem from Kurnool who wanted to avail of the free surgery facility recently started by the hospital in collaboration with a US-based NGO but was turned away by the lower level staff as they had no knowledge of any such scheme.

The NGO, Smile Train, had tied up with NIMS to provide free comprehensive treatment to cleft lip and cleft palate patients of `any age.' The scheme, launched on November 13, provides for free hospitalisation, surgery, drugs and consumables to patients and free food for one attendant during the stay of the patient in the hospital.

Based on a report published by The Hindu announcing the launch of the scheme, a daily wage labourer from Kurnool, A. Venkataswamy, went to NIMS along with his father to avail of the facility. To their dismay, the hospital staff turned them away saying the surgery is free for only patients below 18 years of age, a scheme existing prior to Smile Train collaborating with NIMS. Venkataswamy was asked to pay Rs. 4,000 towards surgery fee.

When they pointed out the article in The Hindu, the staff reportedly bluntly said they could not be responsible for what the newspaper reporters write. The two returned to Kurnool disappointed, paying up for the two-way transportation charges out of their meagre earnings.

The case of Venkataswamy was taken up by a Kurnool-based school whose principal wrote a letter to The Hindu in this connection. The complaint was immediately referred to the Smile Train Project Director and the Head, Plastic Surgery Department at NIMS, D. Mukunda Reddy, who apologised for the lapse by the lower level staff at the hospital. He said it was a communication gap and promised to take up the surgery on the patient free of cost.

He would also reimburse the transportation charges for the earlier one and another journey of Venkataswamy and his father. He promised to issue a circular to the hospital staff to prevent recurrence of such mishaps.

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