Use and abuse of alcohol happen to be on the rise as is evident from the number of victims brought to City’s premier public hospital
A reality check at the Gandhi Medical College and Hospital, the premier public hospital, reveals startling facts about abuse of alcohol. Alcohol related accidents are on the rise in the emergency wing of Gandhi Hospital. Most of the accident cases that come to the hospital are because the people act irresponsibly in an inebriated condition.
Take for instance the bizarre incident of Santosh Kumar, 28, who poked a broken tubelight into his stomach after consuming alcohol. In a separate incident, Rajashekhar Reddy, a 28-year-old residing in Warasiguda, attempted suicide by cutting his wrist with a blade. He was found to be in an inebriated condition.
Drunk driving cases too continue to plague the City. Around 1 am on Tuesday Tanoov, 37, a native of Warangal, met with an accident in Tarnaka while driving drunk. He sustained head injuries. In yet another incident, Shiv Raj, 30, jumped from his second floor apartment in LB Nagar on March 4. He sustained grave injuries and had to be rushed to Gandhi Hospital.
For the staff at Gandhi Hospital, drunken scenes are all too familiar. Only recently, 35-year-old Laxmipathy created a ruckus in the casualty ward, following which he had to be admitted to the emergency ward to control the situation.
Situations like these are an everyday affair for hospital staff. In fact, doctors in the emergency wing of the hospital first check for traces of alcohol before proceeding with any treatment. Dr Afzal K at the emergency section said that over the past few months, alcohol-related accident cases have increased. “We used to get many such cases earlier, but the numbers have increased drastically in the recent past,” he said. The doctor said alcohol cases in the past one year averaged 300 a month as compared to 200 in the corresponding period last year.
Confirms Dr Naina Acharya, a senior doctor at Gandhi Hospital’s emergency wing, “To my knowledge, such cases have increased by about 30 per cent when compared to last year. Most of the accident victims consume alcohol, losing motor control and end up hurting themselves and others around them. We advise them to control their alcohol intake.”
Courtesy postnoon