Kapalawati Yadav of Rupandehi died Sunday morning while Jhillu Ram Neupane of Pragati Nagar-4, Nawalparasi, Amni Devi Sunar of Nawalparasi and another patient breathed their last on Saturday.[break]
Sources at the hospital said on an average a patient dies every day at the hospital but four deaths in two days is alarming. The leader of the patients´ struggle committee Buddhi Prasad Baral has claimed that more patients have died before Saturday in want of treatment due to the ongoing strike.
Currently, there are 55 patients admitted in the hospital that has an occupancy record of up to 130 patients on normal days.
Bal Kumari Limbu, 46, of Taplejung, has a throat cancer due to which she has problems even in drinking water. She was brought to Bharatpur Cancer Hospital for treatment 22 days ago. But she is yet to receive any treatment even as the money her brother Sandesh Limbu brought along has been already used up.
Sandesh, who was busy crushing rocks and bricks Sunday, has started working as a construction laborer.
“My sister cannot even drink water,” said Sandesh, tears welling up in his eyes. “We came from afar and I don´t know where should I take her now? We don´t have any money left,” he said.
“I earn three hundred rupees a day; therefore, even if the doctors reach an agreement, the problem now is money,” said Sandesh who had brought Rs 25,000 from home.
It is not just Sandesh who has run out of money due to the hospital´s internal problems. “Some relatives of the patients sell fruits in the afternoon,” said Yograj Limbu, who himself came to attend on a relative. “I, too, would be left with no money in a few days. I have started looking for employment,” said Limbu who is taking care of his 81-year-old uncle Sher Bahadur who has cancer.
The relatives of cancer patients are growing restless as they are forced to spend all their money meant for the treatment on other things.
“There are no doctors in the hospital and staffers ask us to leave,” said Badri Prasad Baral from Kaski whose daughter suffers from cancer.
The patients and their attendants sought help from the District Administration Office to no avail. The chief district officer expressed helplessness, according to an attendant.
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