A Father’s Cry for Justice: When Hospitals Put Price Tags on Lives
- Neha Kumari
- Aug 24
- 3 min read
In one of the most spine chilling heart wrenching incidents of the Lakhimpur, Kheri district of Uttar Pradesh, a young father walked in to the office of the district magistrate carrying the lifeless body of his newborn child in a handbag.
His emotional entreaty was brief and yet improbable: “Bring my baby back to life.”
Beneath this unfathomable moment, there is a sad tale of exploitation, corruption, and the necessity of reformation of India healthcare system.
The Confronting Incident
As per reports, the 30 year old father shouted that hospital staff has asked to take Rs 10,000 to deliver a baby normally and Rs 12,000 to do a minor surgery.
The family, which is doing badly financially, was not able to find the sum in due time. During this procrastination however, valuable time was wasted and in between, the life of the baby extinguished.
Worse still, the system itself is inhuman; this is its sensitivity, this is the tragedy. The cost of dealing with the medical emergencies was marked by requests of bribes, along with overcharging so as to make a profit.
Poor people will remain poor in such a business like healthcare.
A Father in Distress
The helplessness of the millions of families in India is symbolically depicted when the father carries his baby in a handbag during his walk to the office of the district magistrate.
He begged officials to help his child as his eyes were filled by tears- perhaps, he knew the fact that there was nothing, which could be done.
However, the act was not merely about hope- it was a helpless battle to bring awareness to the wicked corruption in hospital that still claims innocent lives.
The one father is not crying with tears of one parent, but he symbolizes thousands of parents whose voices could not be heard because of poverty, negligence, and system greed.
The Bigger Problem: What to do when Healthcare Tip-Toes into a Marketplace
History has shown that India still continues to grapple with two-fold identity with its health care system.
On the one hand, it boasts a number of the most talented physicians and most advanced treatments in the world. On one hand, it is ridden with bribes, malpractices and duplicity and exploitation of the poor.
At that level, it takes only a difference of a couple of thousand rupees to mean the difference between life and death.
Such actions of hospitals are not only unethical, but criminal as well, as hospitals require the payment of magnificent sums of money before attempting to treat a patient.
All delays that may be caused by such demands steal the most valuable resource in critical care: time.
Responsibility and Accountability
The law enforcement personnel of the state have currently created an inquiry regarding the case, however, the more important question is:
Will justice ever suffice?
In the case of the father who lost his newborn baby, nothing will restore it even with action, suspension or inquiry.
What India requires is overhauling of the system. There are to be no goals.
Strict supervision of government and private hospitals such their denying patients in need due to lack of money.
Zero tolerance to against corruption in healthcare.
Emergency care laws, which require treatment and payment be made separately.
Creates awareness and support of poor families in such a way that they understand their rights and do not become victims of these demands.
Humanity Comes First, Every Time
This is not just a sad piece of news but a wake up call to the society, that we are becoming inhuman in the rat race to earn money and grow in power.
The life of a newborn should not be at stake in regards to whether his/her father can permit Rs 10,000 or not. Good health is not a luxury but one of the core rights of a human being
So long as the doctors and hospitals forget they take the Hippocratic Oath to serve without any selfish motive, such stories are here to stay.
As long as society does not require that change, then parent will continue to carry their dead children in handbags, and knock on closed doors when all they required was the help but never received.
This is not only a personal tragedy of this father in Lakhimpur Kheri, who had to carry the dead body of his newborn in a handbag to the office of district magistrate and bang the door and plead with him; but the disclosure of the extent to which corruption has become the most unethical and immoral killer when it comes to the victims with no voice of their own.
Healthcare is not about selling lives, which could be saved. There should be a high-level accountability, radical reforms and human first before profit.
Comments