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Heart patient, 75, walks out of SSKM

By Rajesh Kumar, Section Health
Posted on Mon May 16, 2005 at 10:42:13 PM EST

Less than a week after an 11-year-old challenged girl went missing from Bangur Institute of Neurology, a 75-year-old man has disappeared from SSKM Hospital, leaving relatives and hospital authorities in the dark.

According to hospital records, Jubaraj Hazra went missing on Saturday night, shortly after nurses administered him a drug.

The hospital realised he had disappeared early on Sunday. His family members have complained that they were informed about the disappearance only in the afternoon, when they turned up to see the patient.

They expressed displeasure that the missing diary lodged with the police by the hospital suggests that Hazra fled because he was unable to pay his dues, amounting to Rs 800.

"It is not that we had informed the authorities that we would not be able to pay the bills. Why weren't we even told that my father is missing? We provided our telephone number in the hospital admission form. The least the authorities could have done is to give us a call," said Deepak, Jubaraj's eldest son.

The family members lodged a separate missing diary with Bhowanipore police station on Monday.

A resident of Roy Bahadur Road, in Behala, Hazra was admitted to the cardiology department of the SSKM under D.P. Sinha on May 4. He was recommended immediate admission by doctors of the outdoor department after a bout of severe chest pain. His bed number was PU25.

The hospital authorities said that on Saturday, nurses on duty had administered Hazra medicine around 10.15 pm. Around 1.30 am, the hospital staff noticed he was not in his bed. After a search proved futile, the higher-ups were informed and finally, a missing diary was lodged.

"We don't have a separate uniform for patients, so if someone wants to walk away, we can't stop him or her. Besides irregular rhythm of heart, the patient was suffering from senile dementia. This means, after he walked out, he would have no idea where he was last," said Shantanu Tripathy, medical superintendent of the hospital.

Hazra's relatives questioned how an old man could walk out of the hospital without being stopped by the security personnel. "How is it possible that no one saw my father leave the premises?" questioned Deepak.

Hazra's photograph has been passed on to adjoining police stations as well as the Missing Persons' Sqaud at Lalbazar, said officers of Bhowanipore police station.

http://www.telegraphindia.com/1050517/asp/calcutta/story_4746742.asp

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