My father, a cardiac patient got admitted to St.Thomas Mount hospital for low bp due to coughing up and vomitting of phlegm for 2 days.He was taken to the hospital friday morning and put on IV.We submitted all his heart related reports to the doctors.He was later shifted to an ac room where the air conditioning unit was faulty and was leaking the whole night.He was put constanly on IV and was given so many injections and so many blood tests were being done.He was taken for echo test only on friday evening despite knowing that he was a heart patient and had stopped taking heart medication due to the vomitting and empty stomach.Father was complaining stuffiness and we asked the staff several times to move us to a room where the ac worked.The ac was leaking and they kept some buckets to collect the water!Friday night they finally thought they will give us another ac room and started cleaning it .But alas, the compressor broke in that room and we were stuck to the same room.Patients in one other room was complaining of the same.
Father's echo report came saturday late morning and one Dr.Ashok came then to see him after seeing him the previous day morning.Meanwhile dad became very weak and none of the medications they had given for coughing or vomitting worked and he started vomitting blood due to excessive coughing.Am not sure if any medications were given for his heart condition.Doctor advised that he moved to the ICU to monitor his salt levels.Father was hesitant to do that.After a few minutes he started gasping and asked for more oxygen.The oxygen cylinder had almost run out and he asked them to get a new one because he was not beng comfortable.There was a delay in getting that.Father became more and more uncomfortable and the nurse asked someone to get a stretcher.Again some delay in getting the stretcher.Finally stretcher came and father was taken to the ICU.
The intensivist informed me and mom after some minutes that father had suffered a caridac arrest and they had somehow revived his heart and put him on life support.He continued to be in life support for whole of saturday.What was surprising is that the ICU did not have a cardiologist all the time.Many a time even duty doctors were not available and the nurses took care of the patients.We were enquiring if its safe to shift father to some other hospital.But they informed us its a great risk and that they were not equipped with an ambulance with ventilator support.Anyway time passed on saturday with us praying and hoping that fathers bp stabilizes.On saturday night about 10 pm the next duty doctor called me and informed me that "I hope the cardiologist and others have informed you.Patients condition is very critical.Its my guess that he will be alive for maximum two hours.".Whereas the cardiologist had informed us sometime back that we just have to wait and watch.I was thoroughly upset by her gestimate and ultimatum on a person's life.In my shock i told her that the cardiologist did not mention it so specifically to us.Then she is showing some files to me and pointing out to some staements written by doctors.I told her i have no idea what they have written but atleast they did not tell us so.Then the nurses are like "No no they told.We know you will create such problems.Thats why we write everyting down"!So much for being sensitive to a person's feelings.Somehow i got the feeling that they might even take father out of life support.So i called up some relatives and we spoke to the doctor and cardiologist and got the assurance that they would do no such thing.
On sunday morning they had installed speakers on every corner of the whole hospital and the sunday mass was being played loudly on it, just when we thought of catching some sleep.I pity the patients.I hope atleast the ICU was sound proof.We were hoping that father will pull through as a nurse told us that his bp has stabilised a bit.But sadly he passed away on Sunday at 3.30 pm.And then the other things are not so important.Atleast the duty doctor who was rude to me the previous night was considerate and did not pester me with so much details.They had charged the insurance Rs.20000 for the ICU and the room for 3 days.I did not even bother to check the split up cost.
Ok my advice is,If you can help it then avoid this hospital.Well after that,one person told us about some kidney theft in that hospital and one person made a random statement that people going there dont seem to recover or come out cured.The End.