‘Ambulance’ train stopped, both MP patients & city hospitals in pain

Nagpur: While the lockdown in Nagpur has taken a toll on heathcare in neighbouring Madhya Pradesh, hospitals in the city too have suffered loss of business.
The Amravati-Jabalpur Express, also known as ambulance among the locals, was the only hope for thousands of patients from remotest villages of Madhya Pradesh to reach a doctor in Nagpur. Each day, almost a train-full of patients used to reach Nagpur and go back in the evening, till it stopped after the lockdown was imposed.
As the lockdown has stopped all intercity trains and buses also not plying, this has left patients in Madhya Pradesh struggling, sources in the health care business say. Back in Jabalpur, demands are being raised to start the train service. In Nagpur, absence of patients from MP has led to a sharp decline in bed occupancy of hospitals.
Mansi Agrawal of Alexis Hospital said as much as 60% of the patient influx was from Madhya Pradesh, which has dropped considerably. “We have begun tele-consultation but that does not give the same results. Physical examination is needed and tele-consultation can only be happening in old cases for review,” she said.
A representative of the hospital at Jabalpur said he keeps getting inquiries from the patients who want to know when access to Nagpur will be opened. Some patients have no choice but to wait, he said.
Dr Anoop Marar of Orange City Hospital said the fall in patients from Madhya Pradesh has led to a direct impact in the bed occupancy in hospitals across the city. He estimated that the occupancy may have easily gone down to less than half of the normal levels, and the patients have been left harried too.
“If the number of patients going to Nagpur has gone down, the load has increased in hospitals in Madhya Pradesh,” said Dr Saurabh Choudhary, a private practitioner at Damoh town.
“However, this has affected treatment also. There are patients who have come with blood pressure as high as 180 on account of lack of review. “Patients who were prescribed a month’s medicine have stopped taking the doses as they could not go to the doctor after that,” he said.
Swati Godbole, former mayor of Jabalpur, said, “Local representatives and politicians are getting a number of requests to take up the cause of starting the Amravati-Jabalpur train. Even as people have started reaching Nagpur in private vehicles, not everyone especially those coming from interior villages have the means. Closure of the Nagpur-Jabalpur highway has added to the troubles as 80km detour has to be taken.”
Politicians are not raising the issue considering that it may not be heeded due to the pandemic. However, measures like allotting only two berths in a seat can be taken for starting the train, she said.
A representative of Care Hospitals said there are patients who had undergone surgeries before the lockdown, but they cannot come down for a review.