Cardboard used as splint at Thane hospital, staff suspended

A sanitation worker at Kalyan-Dombivli Municipal Corporation's (KDMC) Rukminibai Hospital has been suspended after staff used cardboard instead of a plaster cast on a patient's fractured leg, sparking outrage. Ram Soni, 54, was admitted with a leg injury on Thursday. An X-ray confirmed a fracture, but his son Abhay said staff told him plaster of Paris was unavailable and demanded Rs 400 to arrange it. When he refused, they strapped discarded cardboard to the leg with a cotton bandage.

The Times of India reports that KDMC's health officer, Dr Deepa Shukla, said the hospital had sufficient plaster stock and that the sanitation worker, Mukesh Pandit, had allegedly demanded money from the family. A departmental inquiry has been ordered. Hindustan Times adds that Pandit had a history of misconduct. The incident came to light after a video went viral, drawing political leaders to the hospital.

Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) corporator Ganesh Landge has demanded that KDMC improve hospital conditions within a week, or the party will launch a protest. MNS city president Harshad Patil urged the state government to take over the hospital. The controversy follows a recent case at the same hospital where a broken injection needle was left lodged in a toddler's back.