Sting reveals murky side of Thrissur medical college

THRISSUR: A group of youngsters claims to have exposed the corruption in the government medical college hospital here through a sting operation. As per the visuals presented here on Saturday, an orthopaedic surgeon asked a ‘patient,’ who feigned injury on the leg, to put bandage after an X-ray was taken and examined. Activist Somdev Rajan of Chiyaram, Thrissur, who conducted the sting operation, said that he had been receiving complaints from several patients about the maladministration and corruption in the MCH and about some doctors making patients buy expensive medicines.

“A team of 15 persons was involved in the operations. Three of the patients who approached orthopaedic surgeon Vineesh Senan at his OP at the MCH on October 4 feigned injury. He asked them to take medicines costing Rs 350 to Rs 600. A man who feigned severe pain on his leg was first asked to get an X-ray of his leg. The doctor later told him that he needed rest as there was a hairline fracture. The doctor also marked it on the X-ray. Later, the patient was asked to put on bandage and buy medicines worth Rs 600,” said Mr Somdev, who presented the visuals.

The same patient approached another orthopaedic surgeon who issued a no-bone injury certificate (NBI) to the ‘patient,’ said Mr Somdev who works as the secretary of the Thrissur Town Council of CMP (LDF). He said that the visuals of the sting were handed over to city police commissioner J. Himendranath for further action. Meanwhile, Dr Vineesh Senan said that he had been in service for 13 years and works at his OP from 8 a.m. to p.m. on Tuesdays and Fridays. He treats nearly 200 patients a day. “The claims of those who did the sting are baseless and I have always shown my commitment to the poor patients. I am not sure whether the X-ray shown to me by the ‘patient’ was genuine,” he said.