A photograph that emerged from Jahanabad, Bihar, has raised serious questions regarding the functioning of the state healthcare system. Two young men injured in a road traffic accident were given a piece of cardboard on their legs instead of proper treatment, after which they were referred from the hospital.
The question is not only why the patients were not cast, but also why they could not even be provided with basic medical services in the public hospital where people seek quality medical care.
The incident occurred on Thursday. Four young people were injured in the collision of two motorcycles near the Khulasganj police station. Two of them had severely broken legs. Local residents took the injured to the Khulasganj Community Medical Center. According to reports, instead of a cast for fixing the broken legs of both patients, a piece of cardboard was attached, after which they were transferred to Jahanabad Sadar Hospital.
There was hope that the district hospital would provide them with proper assistance, but there they too did not apply a cast, and the patients were sent to Patna PMSH. When a photo of this situation went viral on social media, it attracted the attention of officials. The Secretary of the Health Department took note of the case, after which the district administration demanded explanations from the chief surgeon, the head of the Sadar Hospital, and the DPM. A notification was sent to the relevant doctors requiring them to respond within 24 hours.
This case casts doubt on the quality of medical services and patient care in public hospitals. If standard casting cannot be obtained at a district hospital for a fracture, how reliable is the treatment system for critically ill patients? The question arises: were the necessary medications unavailable at the hospital, or is this a result of staff negligence? Only after an investigation by the administration will the full picture become clear.
Following the appearance of the photograph, opposition leader Tejashwi Yadav criticized the Bihar government, questioning whether the state's financial condition had deteriorated to such an extent that there were no funds left even for applying a cast for a leg fracture at the district hospital.
Although the administration has already requested answers from the relevant doctors, the main question remains: why did such a situation occur in the first place? Attaching cardboard to a patient's broken leg—is this merely an oversight by one hospital, or does it reflect the overall picture of the public healthcare system, where facilities exist on paper, but in reality, patients are forced to endure difficulties?