Singapore—After a netizen wrote an open letter claiming that he was discharged from Khoo Teck Puat Hospital (KTPH) without receiving treatment for the wounds he received from a vehicular accident, the hospital has responded by saying the patient himself had asked to be discharged on the day of the accident.
Mohan Raj, who goes by Spike Raj on Facebook, took to the social media site on March 10 to write an open letter recounting how he had been discharged from KTPH after a car accident when it had been determined he had no internal injuries. But his wounds, pictures of which he posted, remained untreated when he was discharged, he said.Read related: Netizen writes open letter claiming hospital discharged him without treating his wounds after car accident
He wrote that he had been in a vehicular accident on February 16 of this year, which resulted in him being thrown out of the car he was in. He was brought by a Good Samaritan who was passing by to Khoo Teck Puat Hospital (KTPH), which was nearest to the scene of the accident. The accident happened at the Central Expressway, close to the Ang Mo Kio Institute of Technical Education College.
And while he “appreciated” that a head x-ray and CT scan was performed in order to determine that he had no internal injuries, he also said that the wounds and injuries on his hands, legs, buttocks, and face were not cleaned, and he had to seek treatment elsewhere later.
Because he ran a fever after he was discharged, he sought further treatment at Mount Elizabeth Novena, where his head wound was sewn up, and all his wounds were cleaned and dressed.
In response to his open letter, a spokeswoman from KTPH, Jolyn Law, issued a statement saying that Mr Raj “himself had conveyed to our doctors that he would like to be discharged on the same day.”
Coconuts Singapore reported that the hospital had launched an investigation into Mr Raj’s story after it went public.
Ms Law added that contrary to the patient’s allegations, Mr rajas wounds were actually “appropriately washed, treated and dressed in bandages.” Moreover, he was given medication for pain and an injection to ensure he would not get an infection.
The doctors at KTPH had said his head wound did not need stitches, according to Ms Law, and that he was in a “stable condition” when released from the hospital.
“We regret that Mr Raj experienced distress and disappointment with the care rendered and we have offered to meet him in person to answer any further queries he may have,” Ms Law’s statement said.
While Mr Raj does not deny that he asked to be discharged, he told Coconuts Singapore, “The reason that I said that I wanted to go home was because there wasn’t any update from the doctor of what was happening to me and [whether I would] be warded and so on. Also [I] wasnt able to see my parents the whole time. I think at this point of distress they should have let my parents see me or anything.”
He also said that he had not been advised otherwise by the doctor whether a longer stay at the hospital was needed. When he asked if he could could go home, they simply said yes.-/TISG
http://theindependent.sg/netizen-writes-open-letter-claiming-hospital-discharged-him-without-treating-his-wounds-after-car-accident/