Video: Woman Delivers Baby Outside Delhi’s Safdarjung Hospital

Jul 19, 2022, 21:59 IST

New Delhi: After a video of a woman giving birth right outside the paediatric ward of Delhi's Safdarjung Hospital went viral on Tuesday, the Union health ministry has sought a report in the matter.

Earlier in the day, a woman delivered her baby on the floor outside the emergency department a few steps away from an overflowing dustbin. She had reached the hospital 15 hours before her delivery to seek admission in the hospital. The relatives of the woman alleged she was forced to deliver outside as the hospital kept postponing her admission and did not act in time.

“She was referred from Dadri to Noida and then to Safdarjung. We reached here around 4-4:30 pm yesterday and kept running from pillar to post through the evening and late into the night, but she wasn’t admitted. This was despite the fact that she had high blood pressure and swelling in her body,” said her husband Harpal Morya (21), a farmer.

ये देश की राजधानी की शर्मसार करने वाली तस्वीर है!महिला की मजबूरी देखिए, सफ़दरजंग अस्पताल के परिसर में ही बच्चे को जन्म देना पड़ा।स्वास्थ्य सेवाओं का ये हाल, सरकार के कुप्रबंधन का परिणाम है! @LambaAlka @NayakRagini @SupriyaShrinate #दिल्ली #SafdarjungHospital pic.twitter.com/hxtKMfQ4iP

— Nishant Agrawal (@Nishant98987156) July 19, 2022

As the video went viral, the DCW took cognizance of the matter and issued a notice to Safdarjung hospital seeking details of its inquiry report and action taken against its staff for alleged medical negligence.

Meanwhile, the Safdarjung hospital said in a statement that the patient, 20-year-old Poonam, was offered admission but did not return with the admission paper. The hospital maintained that she had been examined on Monday evening.

“As Safdarjung Hospital has a no refusal policy, she was examined by the SR (senior resident) on duty at 5:45 pm on 18.07.22 and her condition was found to be 33+6 weeks gestation with preeclampsia in early labour. The patient was offered admission but she did not return with the admission paper,” the statement read.

It further said, “The next day, senior resident on morning GRR (gynae receiving room) duty was informed that a patient was delivering outside. A team from GRR was dispatched immediately and the patient's delivery was taken care of.”