For more than two weeks, 31-year-old autorickshaw driver Ramu Yadav wandered through a maze of private hospitals across Siddharthnagar, Basti, Gorakhpur, and Lucknow, spending over ₹3.5 lakh, without anyone correctly identifying the real danger lurking inside his body.
Injured in a road accident on August 3, Ramu had a deep wound in his throat and a swollen eye. The smaller hospitals he visited chose to treat only the visible tracheostomy injury. His persistent eye pain was dismissed as secondary.
He was even on the verge of being discharged from a Lucknow hospital after “successful” throat treatment. But what these hospitals failed to see—or perhaps chose not to investigate—was that a 6 cm shard of broken glass had pierced through his right eye, crossed the protective membranes, and lodged dangerously deep inside his brain.
It was only when he finally reached King George’s Medical University (KGMU), Lucknow, on August 20, that a proper scan revealed the full horror of his injuries.
On August 22, a multidisciplinary team of neurosurgeons, ophthalmologists, and anaesthesiologists performed a rare, high-risk surgery that not only removed the deadly glass fragment but also preserved both Ramu’s life and his eyesight.
Neurosurgeon Dr. Ankur Bajaj, who led the operation, described the complexity: the team had to protect vital brain tissue, save the eye, prevent hidden fragments from being left behind, and seal the dura to stop cerebrospinal fluid leakage.
“After surgery, the patient not only survived but has retained his eyesight — a rare and remarkable outcome,” Dr. Bajaj said.
Ramu’s ordeal is a grim reflection of the healthcare crisis in much of Uttar Pradesh. While excellent doctors and surgeons exist in premier institutions like KGMU, patients in smaller towns are often trapped in the hands of under-trained or indifferent professionals who lack the experience or willingness to investigate thoroughly.
Instead of probing the root cause of symptoms, many rely on superficial treatment, worsening the patient’s condition and driving families deeper into debt.
Thousands of Ramus are running from one hospital to another but getting nothing back in return, even after spending money.
Poor health care in the state is a stark reality, even though the state has made good strides in other areas of development and progress. It’s high time that the authorities responsible for this malady pull up their socks and come forward to serve the ailing humanity,
Healthcare has become a money pit for the poor. As Ramu’s case shows, families are forced to sell or borrow heavily just to keep a patient alive — yet even after exhausting their meagre savings, they are left without answers.
Everyone needs money, but some in the medical profession seem insatiable, demanding more and more from families who can barely afford a day’s meal.
Ramu’s accident, too, highlights another tragic dimension of poverty: to earn a livelihood, he bought a second-hand autorickshaw with a cheap, duplicate front mirror. Unlike safety glass that shatters into tiny pieces, this fake glass splintered into long, deadly shards — one of which nearly killed him.
Doctors at KGMU have appealed to buyers to always ensure vehicles are fitted with genuine safety glass, and called upon manufacturers and regulators to crack down on dangerous counterfeit parts.
Ultimately, what saved Ramu was the dedication of a team of specialists and the intervention of good Samaritans within the medical fraternity who refused to let him become another casualty of systemic neglect.
But his journey stands as a warning: until there is accountability, regulation, and affordable healthcare in the middle rungs of the system, countless patients like Ramu will continue to suffer — paying with their life’s savings, and often their lives.
