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WARANGAL: In a serious case of patient neglect at Mahatma Gandhi Memorial (MGM) Hospital in Warangal, two critically ill newborns were forced to share a single oxygen cylinder, and their parents were made to carry it themselves to the X-ray department.The incident involved two babies, the daughter of Murali from Warangal city and the son of Devika from Bheemadevarapally mandal, who had been in the hospital’s RICU for four days. The infants were connected to the same oxygen cylinder through separate tubes for their transfer to the X-ray department. Shockingly, the parents had to carry the cylinder without any assistance from hospital staff or attendants.As they struggled along the uneven, waterlogged pathway, the parents, unfamiliar with handling the equipment, lost control when the cylinder’s cap came off, causing an oxygen leak and triggering panic among them and nearby patients. Hearing their screams, a hospital staff member rushed to the spot and stopped the leak.Sompalli Murali, the father of one infant, said doctors had advised tests for his child. A compounder connected both babies to the same oxygen cylinder using nasal cannulas, citing a shortage of cylinders, and instructed the parents to take the children to the diagnostic centre, assuring them he would follow, but he never did.Following the incident, health minister Damodara Rajanarsimha sought a report on the hospital’s condition. He called MGM a vital healthcare centre for North Telangana. He directed the director of medical education (DME) to conduct weekly reviews and asked the health secretary to implement immediate reforms to improve hospital functioning. The minister also sought a review of long-serving employees to assess performance and address stagnation.The minister ordered the removal of hospital superintendent Dr G. Kishore Kumar over the hospital’s alarming conditions and repeated complaints of negligence.
