Kolkata doctors say there won’t be any discrimination against Bangladeshi patients

Last Updated on December 5, 2024 3:04 pm

“As doctors, we do not see the community, religion, or nationality of patients. They are all equal. We will continue our medical services to patients from our neighbouring country who can make it to the city,” says Dr Deepak Shankar Ray, the head of the nephrology department at RN Tagore International Hospital of Cardiac Sciences.

Doctors in hospitals in Kolkata have begun to make their stance clear on Bangladeshi patients, with many emphasising that they would take care of the patients the same as earlier.

The clarification came after the JN Ray Hospital in Kolkata’s Maniktala earlier last week announced that it would not treat any Bangladeshi patients as a sign of protest over the “desecration of the national flag of India in various places” in neighbouring Bangladesh.

It is to be noted that BJP leader Sajal Ghosh, a councillor of Kolkata Municipal Corporation, is one of the directors of this hospital.

Following the Kolkata hospital’s declaration, two hospitals in Tripura also announced the same decision.

Amid this situation, a number of Indian doctors have come forward to reassure Bangladeshi patients that their treatment would not be denied.

Speaking to the Times of India, Peerless Hospital CEO Sudipta Mitra said, “In no way will we discriminate against patients from Bangladesh.”

Similarly, Dr Deepak Shankar Ray, the head of the nephrology department at RN Tagore International Hospital of Cardiac Sciences, said the daily number of patients from Bangladesh had dropped from 20 to around five in recent days, but it was not because of any stance of the hospital.

“Fewer patients are coming due to visa and travel issues. As doctors, we do not see the community, religion, or nationality of patients. They are all equal. We will continue our medical services to patients from our neighbouring country who can make it to the city,” Ray said.

Cardiothoracic and heart transplant surgeon KM Mandana of Fortis Hospital in Kolkata’s Anandapur also said there was no question of not tending to Bangladeshi patients who consider Kolkata their second home.

“The relationship between Kolkata doctors and Bangladeshi patients has been strong for years now, and the current unrest will have no impact on this relationship. In fact, we are worried that many patients are unable to come for treatment as some conditions can go from bad to worse rapidly,” said Mandana.

With visa troubles, some hospitals have also begun organising online consultations.

“While these issues are political, professionally, we have taken the Hippocratic Oath and will treat all patients, including those from Bangladesh, equally,” critical care specialist Dr Ajay Sarkar, head of the department at Peerless Hospital, told the Times of India.

While all hospitals in Kolkata get patients from Bangladesh, Muslim patients outnumber Hindu patients from that country.

In 2023, some 449,570 people from Bangladesh visited India for medical treatment, which was a 48% increase from 2022. This made Bangladeshis the largest nationality of medical tourists to India, accounting for over 22.5% of all visitors.

Strained relationships between the two countries, following former prime minister Sheikh Hasina’s ouster and then the “industrial level disinformation campaign” originating from India, have made communications between the two nations difficult.

Hasina being currently in India has also not helped the situation.

Meanwhile, Indian foreign secretary Vikram Misri is likely to arrive in Dhaka next Tuesday (10 December) as both Bangladesh and India are preparing for a high-level meeting next week.