Bhopal, Aug 31 (IANS) Bhopal District Collector Aashish Singh on Saturday directed private hospitals not to withhold bodies on grounds of unpaid medical bills.
Chairing a meeting with representatives of private hospitals in the capital city, Singh directed that the issue of pending bills should be resolved after handing over the body to the family or attendants of the deceased person.
The move comes after a private hospital allegedly refused to hand over the body of a 20-year-old youth, who died in a road accident late Friday night.
A young man who was hit by a speeding car in Bhopal’s Govindpura area was taken to the city hospital for treatment, where he died.
When the youth’s family members and friends were not handed over his body, they created a ruckus at the hospital and allegedly beat up security personnel and some other medical staff members.
Doctors and other medical staff reportedly fled the hospital to save their lives.
The situation was brought under control after local police reached the spot and the body was handed over to the family of the deceased late Friday night.
Following the incident, representatives of private hospitals in the city raised concerns over the safety of doctors and other medical staff, following which the district collector took cognizance of the matter and chaired a meeting on the issue.
During the meeting, he said that the district administration will ensure the safety of doctors and other medical staff at the workplace.
Doctors associated with private and government hospitals across Madhya Pradesh have raised their security concerns.
The doctors had called off their strike following the Madhya Pradesh High Court’s assurance that it would direct the state government to frame guidelines for the safety of doctors and other medical staff at the workplace.
–IANS
SHK/AS
