“Hospital Is Not a Shelter Home” Husband Ordered to Take Home Accident-Survivor Wife After 4 Years: Calcutta High Court | Global TV
Dr. Deepak Baid
The Calcutta High Court dealt with an unusual case involving a woman who had remained admitted in a private hospital for nearly three years after suffering severe injuries in a road accident. The patient, Poonam Gupta, had been undergoing treatment at Apollo Multispecialty Hospitals Limited since 15 September 2021 following traumatic head injuries sustained after falling from a two-wheeler.
Emergency Treatment and Medical Condition
According to the hospital, the patient was admitted in critical condition and underwent emergency craniotomy surgery due to severe head trauma. She continued to remain hospitalized for a prolonged period as no family member was allegedly willing to take responsibility for her care outside the hospital.
Hospital’s Petition Before the High Court
The writ petition was filed by Apollo Multispecialty Hospitals Limited seeking directions against the State authorities for framing guidelines regarding patients who continue occupying hospital beds despite medical discharge and absence of family support. The hospital also sought transfer of the patient to a State-run medical facility.
Allegations Regarding Hospital Expenses
The hospital informed the Court that only Rs. 15,000 had been paid by the patient’s husband at the time of admission. It further stated that despite repeated requests, the husband neither cleared the growing hospital dues nor agreed to take his wife home. According to the hospital, outstanding medical expenses from September 2021 to September 2024 had crossed approximately Rs. 1.09 crore, while the insurance company had approved only around Rs. 5.7 lakh.
Husband’s Defence Before the Court
The husband submitted before the Court that he was financially incapable of paying such massive medical expenses or arranging long-term treatment for his wife. He also alleged negligence and improper treatment on the part of the hospital, claiming that the patient’s condition had deteriorated during hospitalization.
Medical Board Constituted by the Court
To independently assess the patient’s medical condition, the Court directed the Medical Superintendent of Calcutta Medical College and Hospital to form a committee of specialists. The medical board included experts from departments of geriatrics, neurology, medicine, surgery, and gynecology.
Medical Findings and Rehabilitation Opinion
After examination, the medical board concluded that the patient was conscious, medically stable, capable of feeding herself, and no longer required ICU-level hospitalization. The board opined that the patient could safely remain at home and continue rehabilitation there with assistance from trained paramedical staff. It also clarified that tracheostomy care and future medical needs could be managed through periodic hospital visits whenever necessary.
State Government’s Submission on Shelter Facilities
The State of West Bengal informed the Court that shelters meant for urban homeless persons were not equipped to provide long-term medical rehabilitation or specialized care for recovering patients. The State further clarified that no dedicated government shelter facility existed for such cases.
Court’s Directions to Husband and Authorities
Based on the medical board report, Justice Krishna Rao directed the husband to take his wife home within one week from the date of discharge and ensure proper care and rehabilitation. The Court also directed that if the patient requires any future treatment, she should be taken to a government hospital, which must provide immediate medical assistance and admission if necessary.
Relief Regarding Hospital Dues and Wheelchair Assistance
Considering the husband’s poor financial condition, the Court held that the hospital would not recover the outstanding dues either from the patient or from her husband. However, the hospital was granted liberty to pursue claims against the insurance company in accordance with law. The Court further directed State authorities to provide a wheelchair to the patient free of cost before discharge.
Court Clarifies Order Not a Precedent
The Court observed that the case arose under highly peculiar circumstances and specifically clarified that the directions issued in the present matter should not be treated as a precedent for future cases.
Case Details
Case Number: WPA 26195 of 2024
Apollo Multispecialty Hospitals Limited & Anr. VERSUS State of West Bengal & Ors.
Editor’s Note:
Hospitals face these issues very often.
The courts ruling also has many fallacies.
- Patients overstay was despite discharge and inability for family payment and support.
- Court constituted a medical committee to ascertain discharge??
- Government shed its responsibility by stating inability to provide any assistance. Even Maharashtra Govt does not have any system in place. Why should the Government not bear the expenses in such cases…???
- The court simply let off the financial payments to be made by the family. Does that mean anyone can get away with non payment. The court simply did not have the means to address the issue…??
- Why should the hospital quietly let go of the amount spent on the patient simply cos the court did not have any remedial recourse..??
- Court thought it did service by directing the insurance to make the payments, which obviously will cover only the few lacs of coverage. And with the delay in discharge this amount will not attract any interest compounded over the years….??
- And to top it all, court says that this cannot be seen as a precedent. This means if there is no system in place, so be it. Court will not direct the Govt to come up with a system to prevent such recurrence.
I guess this is not a high profile case, Payments to Hospitals is never a priority.
Hence courts do not find the need to improve the system. A committee formed to look into payments to hospitals has been in limbo for many years.
While high profile media savvy cases get priority attention, cases like these will continue and hospitals will continue to face harassment from patients and certain hostile political parties towards bill settlements.
Hospital is a business entity and we need to stop treating it like a philanthropic institute ready to let go it’s financial incomes.
Patients going to private hospitals on their free will need to pay for the same. Else they should go to Government hospitals if they cannot afford.
Having the cake when you can’t pay for it is cheating and patients and families should be accordingly dealt by courts.
