Doctors perform surgery under mobile torch

Guntur: Doctors at the Government General Hospital here performed a surgery under mobile torch light as power went off in the middle of an operation on Wednesday. When the doctors were performing the surgery, suddenly power went off plunging the operation theatre into darkness. The doctors, however, completed the surgery with the help of the torch in the cellphone in the operation theatre.

It may be recalled the first heart transplant, kidney transplant surgeries were performed at the Government General Hospital here for the first time in the state. Similarly, knee replacement surgery was also performed to Minister for Medical and Health Dr Kamineni Srinivas in this hospital. The government is ready to construct the Mother and Child Hospital block here at a cost of Rs 65 crore but it is not in a position to set up emergency LED lights in the operation theatre.

There are 10 operation theatres in the GGH. One operation theatre was renovated recently. In this operation theatre, out of four emergency LED lights, only one is working. Doctors are performing plastic surgery in this operation theatre. Lighting of one of the lights is not enough to perform surgery.

Doctors complained several times to the hospital superintendent but he did not take steps to solve the problem. Generally, the doctors would not allow surgeries in the plastic surgery operation theatre, though the other operation theatres are not working. However, the doctors are performing all the surgeries in the same theatre under inevitable circumstances.

According to sources at the GGH, the cost of four emergency LED lights is Rs 5-lakh. The GGH authorities should wake up from slumber and purchase the LED lights. Medical Officer Dr V Ramesh said, “It is the responsibility of the hospital authorities to provide facilities and infrastructure in the hospital. When there is no sufficient lighting in the operation theatre, the doctors should not perform surgery because if something goes wrong, the patient would have to face a threat to his life.”

Director of Medical Education Dr N Subba Rao said, ”When the power suddenly goes off in the middle of the surgery, it takes four to five minutes to switch on the generator. We have generator in the hospital. When the power suddenly went off, the doctors used cell phone lighting to perform surgery. In the past also when the power suddenly went off, we used torch light.”