I was out on my daily assignment on Sunday, checking the ground reality and bringing the bitter truth about the Covid crisis to the world. While checking on Mumbai hospitals and their plight, I reached Bhabha Hospital in Bandra around 11:30 am. I saw a man in his 50s, suffering from breathlessness, sitting on a wheelchair. He was trying to breathe with a portable oxygen bottle, helped by one of his relatives.
Immediately, I asked video journalist Raju Sharma to capture his plight. It looked like he was not being admitted because oxygen was not available. I tried to speak to the relatives who were continuously on their phones, trying their best to find an oxygen bed in other hospitals. I got to know that the man, Deepak Abhijeet Mhatre, was 57 years old, from Khar Danda, and had been waiting for more than an hour.
He had reported malaria-like symptoms, and his breathlessness had increased that day, after which he had been brought to Bhabha Hospital. His oxygen level was around 45 or 50. The portable oxygen increased it to just 55. But they were being denied admission as oxygen was not available at the hospital. The relatives were trying their luck with the BMC War Room but were not receiving much response. The man, struggling to breathe, looked at me with hopeful eyes, but if only he knew how helpless we are, in this healthcare system that has collapsed and needs some oxygen itself.
I tweeted an SOS alert, seeing how young leaders were taking advantage of social media to reach out to people and help them. Expecting the same, I tweeted about the situation. I did get some calls offering help but then became aware of more hurdles. I was informed how the man had not gotten Covid tests done, which were mandatory. He was in need of oxygen, but as per health protocols, no hospital would admit him without Covid test reports. I wondered how Covid tests had become more important than the basic requirement of oxygen—even for a man struggling to breathe.
By then it was already 1:00 pm. Somehow, I was informed that tests were being done at the Andheri Holy Family Hospital, but one had to reach the testing centre before 2:00 pm. Everyone was worried how a man in such a state could be taken from Bandra to Andheri.
The relatives opted for a basic antigen test from a private lab. The antigen test turned out to be positive and they started looking for a bed or some oxygen. It was sometime between 1:30 and 2:00 pm. Even after following the primary protocols of the system, there was no affirmative response from BMC War Room. “They say they are trying and will inform us as soon as a bed is available,” said Santosh and Shrikant Mhatre, kin of Deepak Mhatre.
In the meantime, Deepak was brought outside the hospital as he had been feeling more suffocated inside. Seeing how we were coordinating and trying our best to make him alright, Deepak seemed to feel sure he would be fine soon, and his oxygen level reached around 60 or 70. This was when I started talking to Deepak and told him not to fear anything and be strong, and reassured him that we were all taking care of things. He smiled at me and simply said, “Yes, I am fine. Just having a bit of difficulty breathing.” In fact, he seemed better than when I had first spotted him.
Around 2:00 pm, I left for another assignment but remained in continuous touch with Deepak’s relatives. Suddenly at 3.00 pm, I got a call from Santosh. He said, “Ma’am, before you left, you spoke to Deepak and he seemed fine, right? His oxygen level was also 80 outside. As soon as he was admitted at Bhabha Hospital, we were called inside. Sometime after he was taken in, we were informed that he’s no more! His oxygen had depleted.”
I had no words. The man was no more. And it all happened within five hours.
It is likely that Deepak had been well—it’s the system that is unwell. Why are there no spaces for suspected patients? Why didn’t the BMC control room give proper guidance? They could have led the patient somewhere with temporary oxygen availability and then shifted him somewhere else. What is happening to people who are not connected to the internet and cannot communicate with others fast?
Only a day before, oxygen shortage had forced the BMC to move 168 Covid-19 patients from six hospitals. One of them had been Bhabha Hospital.
While a war of words goes on between political leaders and parties every day, the lack of oxygen, Remdesivir and tocilizumab has highlighted how we have failed miserably in creating a healthy mechanism. Amid the blame game and mudslinging that politicians are involved in, who’s responsible for the death of 57-year-old Deepak Mhatre? It’s high time now—politics over this deadly virus should stop and politicians should take accountability. Take better action and make the common man believe that humanity still prevails!