“We had asked Nobel to furnish written explanation by Thursday but they have not responded yet,” Chief of NSMP Dr Cholendra Upreti confirmed. [break]
The private hospital had asked Rs 7,000 in admission fee for ICU and a daily charge of Rs 3,000 and refused to admit Rupa Devi Rishidev on Monday as her family could not arrange the amount.
The 18-year-old breathed her last at her parental home in Biratnagar-5, Kharji at five Tuesday morning hours after she was taken back from the hospital as it refused to admit her despite waiting till 10 at night.
“We said that we will pay after selling a milch cow at our home. But they refused to admit her,” Rupa´s father Chamaru Rishidev had said. Rupa was healthy following her delivery at her home in Katahari two weeks ago but suddenly complained of abdominal pain Monday morning.
She was taken to Koshi Zonal Hospital in the afternoon but was immediately referred to another hospital without proper diagnosis at the public hospital.
The public relations officer at Nobel, Narayan Dahal, acknowledged that the hospital has been asked to explain the incident but did not elaborate. NSMP pays even the private hospitals for deliveries at the hospital as part of the initiative to promote safe motherhood and perinatal care.
NSMP has also interrogated the chief of the District Public Health Office (DPHO) in Morang, Navaraj Subba, about the incident.
Koshi Zonal Hospital has not been able to explain the reason for referring Rupa to another hospital with the hospital records not even showing her name. Radha Pokharel at the maternity ward explained that Rupa was not registered at the hospital as she was referred to another hospital without being admitted.
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