NEW DELHI: Jasbeer Kaur, an 84-year-old from Punjabi Bagh arrived at Deen Dayal Upadhyay Hospital early on Saturday. Though not a healthcare worker, the octogenarian wanted to be vaccinated before going to the United States to meet her son next month. She said that she did not trust the health facilities in the US and wanted the Indian
vaccine. Because the vaccination programme currently is only for
healthcare workers, Kaur was asked to come later in the second phase.
Idling at the waiting area in DDU Hospital, Kaur kept a keen eye on the door of the vaccination booth, hoping that a senior doctor would emerge and she would plead her case. “I have reached out to so many people here to help me and have requested the hospital authorities to let me receive the vaccination. It is not possible for me to come here every day from Punjabi Bagh,” said Kaur, who has to use a walker to move around.
Confessing that she was unaware that the vaccine was currently only meant for the healthcare workers, Kaur said that she had recently gone to Maharaja Agrasen Hospital in Punjabi Bagh where someone told her that she could get inoculated in the bigger hospitals. “That is why I came here early in the morning, but no has been of help here,” she grumbled.
The octogenarian insisted that she needed the vaccine because she is travelling to the US to meet her chartered accountant son. Asked why she did not want to avail of the vaccine in the US, Kaur said, “I do not trust their health services and their facilities. I’d rather receive the vaccine from our Indian doctors than in America. There are many health concerns in the US and Covid cases are also high. It’s quite scary actually.”
While Kaur pleaded with the hospital officials, Dr Deepshika, the person coordinating the vaccinations at the hospital, was emphatic that they could not add Kaur to the list as this would contravene the rules. “We are only administrating the vaccine to healthcare workers registered on the Co-Win app,” she said. “Kaur has to wait for her turn. We told her that she could wait for a few weeks when the phase for the senior citizens begins.”
A disappointed Kaur decided to leave by the afternoon, but not before requesting the hospital to rethink their decision not to let her take the jab.