Elderly patient held up for 40 minutes, says EMRI after Palaniswami calls for ‘checking’ ambulance

A row has been triggered over the passing of an ambulance via a roadside meeting addressed by AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami at Anaicut on Monday night. Mr. Palaniswami, upset that ambulances passed by at several points where he addressed the public during his ongoing Statewide tour, expressed doubts if the ambulance was indeed tending to an emergency or had been sent deliberately to disrupt his address. He wanted the identity of the ambulance driver to be noted.

Meanwhile, on Tuesday, Kannan, district officer, (Emergency Management and Research Institute), charged that an elderly patient was caught up for at least 40 minutes at the Government Hospital in Anaicut for lack of ambulance, before she was shifted to Government Medical College Hospital at Adukkamparai village in Vellore. She had been admitted for severe dehydration and vomiting.

“The ambulance got stuck for at least 20-30 minutes where Mr. Palaniswami was addressing party cadre as part of his campaign before the police managed to find space for the vehicle to pass through,” he said. EMRI officials said around 9.45 p.m., they got a call from the government hospital in Anaicut to shift the patient, Chandra, to Vellore GH. Immediately, an ambulance from the Primary Health Care Centre (PHC) at Pallikonda town, a distance of around 10 km to Anaicut hospital, was assigned the task.

Ambulance driver Surendran took the village stretch to reach the hospital but was stuck at the public gathering spot due to traffic diversion for the meeting. Initially, a passage was cleared for the vehicle, but Mr. Palaniswami allegedly instructed party workers to check whether the ambulance was carrying any patients.

Allegation on DMK

The ambulance had a driver and a male technician. The AIADMK leader accused the DMK of attempting to disrupt his campaign before police intervened and managed to find passage for the vehicle.

The Medical Officer of Anaicut government hospital, Dr. Singaravelu, told The Hindu that Chandra was admitted at the hospital two days ago (Saturday) for diarrhoea. As her condition worsened on Monday, duty doctors at the hospital decided to refer her to Vellore GH.

Dr. Singaravelu said the Anaicut hospital had one ambulance for service but around 9.30 p.m. on Monday, the ambulance was pressed into service to shift a seven-year-old boy, who was suffering from high fever, to Vellore GH. As a result, hospital authorities had to rope in ambulances from other health centres at Pallikonda and Madhanur, the nearest centres available.