In the weekly column, Hemashri tells us about the red tape and babuism in government departments for getting medical bills reimbursed. A Different Truths exclusive.
Watching the agony of the sick, I often wonder what actually causes sickness. Is it a karmic deficit of previous births that one has to repay by enduring disease? Is it God’s anger, or is it the imbalances in the body that the legendary Greek physicians Hippocrates and Galen described? Some diseases are infections caused by pathogens, such as bacteria, viruses, fungi, and parasites. Non-infectious diseases are likely caused by a confluence of factors, including environmental, lifestyle, and genetic ones. I have seen some health-conscious people suffering from a myriad of sicknesses, whereas some carefree souls lead perfectly healthy lives. Witnessing many such self-contradictory phenomena, I have realised that there is a great deal of unpredictability associated with sickness. Such introspection occurs when we endure illness or witness a dear one’s suffering. I have seen my mother suffering for the last one-and-a-half decades. She was a very health-conscious person.
How do we treat a person who is suffering from illness? First of all, the ailment is widely misused as an excuse to evade responsibility, so we instantly distrust anyone who complains about it. As a child, I remember one of the subordinates working under my father, who used to complain and narrate about his gastric problem continuously. This episode was the peak of a period of agitation, with a serious law-and-order situation. My father perhaps paid little heed to his excuse. One day, the man collapsed within half an hour after lunch and died. He had complained of a severe stomachache. His body was brought to our office-cum-residence campus for the last respects. I saw my father breaking down that day. He might be feeling very repentant. I wish he could arrange proper treatment for that ailing man.
In a government department, my job was to assist the head of the department in disposing of his files as his officer on special duty (OSD). In fact, OSD is a versatile post; sometimes, even a very senior or retired person might be an OSD, or someone outside the system might also be appointed as OSD. I was instructed to monitor important matters. I found a file related to the medical reimbursement claim of a widow, Smti Monika Acharjee, making the rounds. Her husband, the late Bimal Acharjee, was admitted to AIIMS, where he died after an operation. Smti Acharjee had submitted all documents in original, and the respective directorates had forwarded them for necessary follow-up. File notes showed that the directorate’s office had misplaced the original documents. So she was again asked to submit the original documents. The District Officer, the Inspector of Schools, wrote to the government stating that the applicant had already submitted the original documents to the government; hence, photocopies of her documents, countersigned by the undersigned, may be treated as genuine. Who claims that the government lacks sensitive people? The finance officer in our department wrote that we should send the documents to AIIMS to verify whether the operation had actually been performed there. The person concerned had died five years ago, when the hospital performed many operations every day. I showed it to my boss, and he was kind enough to forward it to the Finance Department for necessary approval. After a few weeks, the file raised queries. The officer from finance had asked for a ‘dead body handover certificate’. In the presence of the finance officer of our department, I argued that the widow, Smti Acharjee, had submitted tickets from Indian Airlines, which stated that the mortal remains of the deceased, late B. Acharjee was carried on that flight. I made my point that the ticket clearly proved that Smti Acharjee had brought her husband’s dead body. Hence, under the circumstances, requesting such a certificate was unjustified. My boss accepted my argument. That day when we came out of the chamber, the concerned dealing assistant said, “Madam, you are worrying about one case; I have thirteen hundred similar pending claims.” His audacity was shocking. Talking to the concerned officials dealing with medical reimbursement matters, I learned that in the past, several cases of fraudulent withdrawals occurred; hence, the rules were very stringent. Could you explain why a few unscrupulous elements led to everyone being treated so harshly? Having accumulated some experience from accompanying my sick mother to hospitals, I had perhaps become sensitised to the infirm.
After a few months, I had to go through the process of getting medical reimbursement. A complicated surgery was performed on my mother after a Guwahati-based surgeon had failed. The situation required an immediate corrective surgery, and local doctors refused to perform it due to the high risk. So we had to rush her to Apollo Chennai. My sister, a doctor, pursued the clearance of our mother’s medical bills. My husband, who was also an officer, pursued the file to obtain the necessary medical certificate from the respective directorates. After our return from Chennai, I pursued the medical reimbursement file, as our father was a government employee. It required one and a half years of persistent persuasion and some drama to finally obtain the reimbursement. It was a team of three people who took 18 months. A major sickness devastates a family. Medical expenditure in our country is considered very reasonable compared with many other countries. Still, for the middle class, it is a heavy burden. Why should it be such a complicated process? Maybe the policies are too sick for things to change for the better.
Experience has made the heart grow softer. I wish I could do away with all forms of sickness; the world would be poorer in some professions but richer in happiness. After this experience, I feel that various ailments might be a manifestation of God’s wrath. We cannot deny the theory of karmic deficit, either. The disease-causing pathogens are floating in the air or water, but not everyone gets infected. Only a few unfortunate souls get infected, and no one knows when or who will fall sick.
Is it really a sin to be sick?
©Hemashri Hazarika
Photo from the Internet
#Governance #experience #Babuism #KarmicDeficit #DepartmentFinance #GovernanceGallimaufry #DifferentTruths
Hemashri Hazarika is an Officer of the Assam Civil Service since 1997. Her research on Assam Civil Service brought reforms in 2015. A first-class Postgraduate in Economics from Gauhati University, she was awarded JRF/NET by UGC in 1997. Her experience as a bureaucrat has sensitised her to human sufferings. A solutionist by passion, she takes an active interest in issues related to Governance, Development, Women, Children, etc. Reading, Writing, Speaking and Painting are her hobbies.
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