Prayagraj Healthcare Crisis Deepens: SRN Hospital Strike Leaves Thousands Without Treatment, Critical Patients Turned Away

Healthcare services at SRN Hospital remained virtually paralysed for the second consecutive day on Thursday as the ongoing standoff involving junior doctors pushed one of eastern Uttar Pradesh’s largest government medical facilities into complete disorder.

With outpatient departments shut, emergency services disrupted and trauma care suspended, thousands of patients arriving from Prayagraj and neighbouring districts were left stranded without medical assistance.

The situation turned deeply distressing as critically ill patients, cancer sufferers, dialysis patients and emergency referrals waited helplessly outside hospital gates before eventually being forced to return home untreated.

OPDs, Trauma Centre and Medicine Counters Remained Shut

Hospital operations across multiple sections of SRN Hospital remained severely affected throughout the day.

Authorities confirmed that services remained suspended at:

• The Trauma Centre
• The New Building OPD
• The PMSSY Building
• Medicine distribution counters

The closure effectively halted routine consultations, emergency admissions, diagnostic services and treatment procedures.

Patients arriving early in the morning expecting medical attention instead encountered locked counters, overcrowded corridors and uncertainty.

Nearly 3,000 Patients Returned Without Treatment

Officials and hospital sources indicated that nearly 3,000 patients from different districts could not receive treatment due to the strike and disruption.

More than 150 new patients reportedly could not be admitted, while around 60 major surgeries scheduled for Thursday had to be postponed indefinitely.

The breakdown in services also forced several seriously ill patients to seek discharge and leave the hospital despite ongoing medical needs.

For many families, the sudden collapse of healthcare services created panic, frustration and emotional trauma.

Trauma Centre Closure Severely Hit Emergency Care

The shutdown of the Trauma Centre proved especially damaging because SRN Hospital functions as a major referral centre for eastern Uttar Pradesh.

Patients referred from:

• Beli Hospital
• Colvin Hospital
• Community Health Centres (CHCs)
• Primary Health Centres (PHCs)

were reportedly turned away after ambulances were stopped outside the hospital gate.

Emergency medical staff struggled to manage the influx while lacking normal institutional support systems.

Cancer Patient From Mirzapur Waited in Pain

Among the most heartbreaking scenes witnessed outside the hospital was that of Shivcharan Yadav, a cancer patient who had travelled nearly 100 kilometres from Mirzapur seeking treatment.

According to eyewitnesses, Shivcharan lay in visible pain while repeatedly asking his granddaughter where the doctors were.

Witnesses recalled him pleading:
“I came from so far away. I will not go back now, even if I die here.”

His condition became symbolic of the human cost of the ongoing institutional confrontation.

Dialysis Patient Collapsed Outside Hospital

Another patient, Baijnath from Pratapgarh, had reportedly been advised to visit the hospital for further evaluation after dialysis failed to improve his condition.

However, after finding no doctors available, his health deteriorated sharply, and he eventually lay down outside the hospital gate due to weakness and distress.

Family members accompanying him struggled to find immediate medical assistance.

Cancer Patient Waited Hours Before Leaving for Private Hospital

Jadavati Devi, a cancer patient from Jaunpur, reportedly arrived at the hospital around 7 am and remained on a stretcher outside the entrance for nearly five hours.

Despite waiting until noon, she could not receive treatment and was eventually shifted to a private hospital by her family.

The incident highlighted the growing desperation among families dependent on affordable government healthcare facilities.

Hundreds of Serious Patients Forced to Return

Apart from these cases, more than 250 seriously ill patients reportedly returned home without treatment, medicines or diagnostic tests.

These included patients from:

• Gopiganj
• Handia
• Kaudihar
• Phulpur
• Rajapur
• Soraon

Many families said they had spent money arranging transport and travelling long distances only to discover that treatment facilities were unavailable.

Ambulances Stopped Outside Hospital Gates

With the Trauma Centre non-functional, ambulances carrying referred patients were reportedly stopped outside the hospital premises.

Several attendants expressed anger and helplessness after emergency patients were unable to access immediate care.

In many cases, even patients whose diagnostic reports were pending could not proceed with treatment because laboratory and support services were disrupted.

The administrative collapse inside the hospital exposed how dependent the system remains on junior doctors and coordinated emergency functioning.

Injured Woman Advocate Referred to SGPGI Lucknow

Meanwhile, the fallout from the original dispute between lawyers and junior doctors continued.

Jagruti Shukla, one of the women advocates injured during the confrontation linked to the SRN Hospital incident, was reportedly shifted from a private hospital and referred to Sanjay Gandhi Postgraduate Institute of Medical Sciences in Lucknow for advanced treatment.

Her condition and the allegations surrounding the altercation have become central to the growing conflict between the legal and medical communities in Prayagraj.

Public Anger Growing Over Institutional Deadlock

As the strike entered another day, public frustration continued mounting.

Families waiting outside the hospital repeatedly questioned why ordinary citizens were being forced to suffer due to a confrontation between two professional groups.

Residents expressed concern that:

• Emergency healthcare had collapsed
• Critically ill patients were being neglected
• Administrative intervention remained ineffective
• Vulnerable patients were being pushed toward costly private hospitals

Many argued that while doctors and lawyers continued their confrontation, poor and middle-class patients dependent on public healthcare were paying the highest price.

Administration Under Pressure to Restore Services

District authorities, senior police officials and medical college administrators are now facing mounting pressure to restore normal services immediately.

Repeated attempts to persuade junior doctors to resume work have reportedly failed so far.

At the same time, lawyers continue demanding strict action and arrests related to the alleged assault on women advocates.

The prolonged standoff has effectively paralysed one of the most important healthcare institutions in the region.

A Crisis Bigger Than a Protest

What began as an altercation inside a hospital has now evolved into a wider humanitarian and administrative crisis.

Healthcare experts warn that prolonged disruption at a tertiary government hospital like SRN can have devastating consequences because thousands of economically vulnerable patients rely on it daily for:

• Cancer treatment
• Dialysis
• Trauma care
• Surgeries
• Emergency medicine
• Specialist consultations

As tensions continue, the crisis in Prayagraj is no longer just about doctors versus lawyers — it has become a test of how public institutions respond when professional conflict begins threatening the lives of ordinary citizens.