Kerala’s health sector has completely collapsed, alleges K Muraleedharan

Senior Congress leader K Muraleedharan on Friday alleged that Kerala’s public health sector has “completely collapsed,” and questioned whether the state Health Department was “on a ventilator or in the mortuary.”

Speaking to mediapersons here, Muraleedharan said ordinary people are now afraid to seek treatment at government hospitals, claiming that public confidence in the health system has eroded.

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Referring to alleged incidents of medical negligence, he cited the case of a housewife, Usha Joseph, who was admitted to Government Medical College, Alappuzha, five years ago for the removal of a uterine tumour.

“The surgery was performed, but a pair of scissors was left inside her stomach. She endured severe pain for five years. The doctors allegedly told her not to disclose the matter,” he claimed.

He also referred to another case in which a woman named Harshina allegedly had surgical scissors left inside her abdomen following a caesarean operation at Kozhikode Medical College Hospital.

Muraleedharan further claimed that a fetus died recently due to alleged mismanagement at the Nedumangad Government Hospital, and said such incidents were occurring frequently in government hospitals.

“Doctors in medical colleges are on strike, and not a single major surgery is being conducted. At the same time, the Chief Minister went to Abu Dhabi and claimed that Kerala’s health sector has surpassed that of America,” he said.

In a sharp remark, Muraleedharan said the situation had reached a point where patients undergoing surgery in government hospitals risked having surgical instruments left inside their bodies.

“If you go for surgery in a government hospital, you get free scissors in your stomach,” he quipped.

Meanwhile, Leader of the Opposition VD Satheesan also alleged that the state’s health sector had collapsed.

Speaking to mediapersons in Aluva, Satheesan said incidents occurring in the state regularly supported the Opposition’s claims that the Health Department was “on a ventilator.”

“The government dismisses each case as an isolated incident. But if all these isolated incidents are put together, it would amount to volumes of negligence,” he said.