MY Experience with IGMH yesterday, and how AASANDHA became BAASANDHA: Because of a mild periodontal problem which I have had for the last one week or so,I decided to seek the advice of a dentist. Im a non-smoker---I dont chew arecanuts -- I do regularly brush my teeth and gargle with mouth wash--but, with no known reason,it caused for me to have dental problem. So,yesterday, the morning of Thursday,16th Oct, I arrived at IGMH at around 8.10(am). I approached one of the young ladies waiting at the information counter. Can I see a dentist today, I asked her. She looked at me,and said,No, and she said that all the appointment numbers that were allocated for yesterday were fully issued and that it was not possible for me to see a dentist then.My refusal to budge and with my insistence, she finally became heedful, and she suggested me to go to Dental Department itself where, sometimes, I could possibly try to get a cancelled number, --numbers of those who had gotten appointments but didnt make their presence available in due time,--were re-issued to the late comers. I entered the dental section where I saw 10 or more chairs manually numbered from 1-10. I sat, not the first or the second chair, but on the chair marked with the number 3, not because I wanted it but because there were two ladies (patients) who had taken the seats before I arrived. At exactly 8.30am,the young girl in charge began to distribute the cancelled numbers. I was one among those luckiest who received a cancelled,token, number to see the dentist. My appointment number was15, and I waited for my number to arrive. Peep”,sounded, and my number was displayed on the screen fixed on the ceiling ,and I was ushered into the doctor’s room. The lady doctor’s name was Dr.Sarda Waironkpan, a Chinese featured pretty woman of 35 or so years of age. Beside her, she had two young ladies, Maldivians, working as her assistants. “ Please take your seat”, said the doctor, indicating her hand to the direction of the big dentists’ chair that occupied the room. “So, what’s your problem,” she murmured, as she kept her gaze fixed on the paper she was still holding. I adjusted myself to the big chair that laid horizontally, and said, “On the left side, between the last two teeth of my upper jaw, I have a discomfort ;pain that is existing for a week now, I want you to thoroughly check and see how severe it has become and treat it.” “let me check“, she said, and poked a small hand-held instrument into my mouth. “Hmm,” she said,this isn’t as bad as you thought. It’s a mild gum infection for which you need gargling with Mouth Wash which you can do at home, twice daily.” Her rapid reaction didn’t satisfy me ,and I thought her careless examination wouldn’t have helped her to know how serious my illness was. “Don’t you have a better mean to verify it?” I asked her, “ Do you have a mean such as X-ray to help you work effectively?” She looked at her assistant rather reluctantly and gestured to go action. In a moment, the x-raying was completed, and it revealed , between the last two teeth in my upper jaw, a cavity-like(not real cavity) “gap” widened because of a gum problem that existed, where, despite proper cleaning, food particles got stuck, which clearly needed filling. The doctor and her two assistants talked, silently, for a while, and one of the assistants came to me and said,”Sir,your teeth need filling , but we don’t have the particular substance used to do the tooth-filling. We had run out of the stock for long now, and despite our repeated requests, the management of IGMH haven’t supplied to us the important item needed to give proper treatments for the patients. I suggest you go to a private clinic to do the filling.” I was taken aback and felt pity knowing the poor condition on which IGMH, the biggest government hospital in the country was being operated. “Well”,I said,”but you must have the vital substance needed for this hospital to give uninterrupted services and treatments to the patients who come here in the hope of getting proper care.” The doctor and the two assistants’ faces became grimed and nodded in dismay and with a brave face, one of the assistants told me that they would try again with the management of the hospital, and if and when they get it, that they will start giving proper treatments to the patients. “Here is our telephone number,3335375, she said,”you can call us after a week or so, and when the item is available, you can come to us again to complete your needed treatment.” The doctor,then,quickly prescribed a medicine to me,which I later learned that it was Listerine Mouth Wash. I went straight to the pharmacy known as ‘STO Pharmacy’, the chemist shop situated within the huge compound of IGMH hospital. After passing through the long procedures and long waiting, I extended my prescription to the pharmacist who was seated behind the counter. He had a quick look on the paper, and before handing over the paper back to me, he said, “We do not have this medicine available here in the pharmacy for a long time now.” I started to walk away murmuring myself , ”the rumour that is being spread around this country is true, truly Aasandha has become Baasandha, and they neither have the tooth-filling nor the simple Listerine Mouth Wash Solution which I was supposed to get from the medical scheme’ Aasandha’ which was introduced and successfully operated during the golden era of the Presidency of HEP Nasheed.” After exiting IGMH, and in order to ease the already difficult matter ,I bought Listerine Mouth Wash from the smallest corner shop placed on the main road opposite IGMH. I thought of making a complaint to the management of IGMH,but the question that struck me was ” whom to complain?” After the covert and well designed coup that was carried out by PPM, the governing party, to oust the management of Dr. Shakeela, on pretext of improving the condition of IGMH, in fact, I saw the condition of IGMH had further deteriorated. Dr. Habeeb and Dr. Afeef, both equally capable medical practitioners, whom I have high regard, have simply vanished from the scene. Finally,I left to home at 11.3o am, undecided, but high on adrenaline to pursue with perseverance, the right guaranteed in the constitution of Maldives.
Posted on: Fri, 17 Oct 2014 17:39:01 +0000
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