Locating an accident victim in Bangalore: Some lessons

I had one of the most disturbing experiences of my life yesterday. Got a phone call around 4 pm from Bangalore Traffic Police with one man – speaking fast and furious in Kannada – telling me that a lady I know has been in a road accident and has to be shifted to the St John’s Hospital.

Now, this is an acquaintance through work and although we’ve been in touch for years now and worked together “virtually” I dont know much about her except her phone numbers and e-contacts. I presume they called me from her last received call as I had been trying to reach her earlier in the day.

Anyway, coming back to yesterday’s incident, the moment the policeman understood I can’t speak Kannada, he hung up on me. Five minutes later, he had a passer-by call me up who knew a bit of Hindi and I managed to pass him the home phone number of my colleague. By now, I was frantic and trying to call her home number myself, but to no avail. At around 6, another policeman responded to my sms on her phone saying “she was out of danger and her husband had been informed.” Beyond that, he couldn’t or wouldn’t tell me anything.

In the evening I called St John’s Hospital telling them I needed information about a friend who had been in an accident and was reportedly brought to their hospital. After answering a barrage of questions, my call was transferred to the Emergency ward who looked up their records and told me – Yes, a person by that name had been brought to them, but had since been admitted to the cardio-thoracic ward.

I was asked to call that department which I did. Another round of interrogation and then I was told that there had been no admissions yesterday in that name! Another brick wall! I guess I just have to find her address now and go visit her family to ensure that all is fine. Both the phone numbers remained unanswered till this morning.

THOUGHT 1: It is shameful that after 8 years in this city, I still cannot speak the local language. The five minutes after the first policeman hung up on me were among the most torturous of my life. I just have to do something about it…and I advise all my non-Kannadiga friends in this city to do so. Life can jerk you out of your comfort zone in the most unpredictable of ways and believe me, there could be worse scenarios than the rogue auto-driver turning a deaf ear to your arguments in Hindi!

THOUGHT 2: When, if ever, will our public institutions like hospitals be able to pull together the communication act? It was plain pathetic the way they were just transferring calls from one person to another without being able to share any concrete information. And I am not even getting into the sensitivity aspect. I am sure this is the same response that people get even if they call (God forbid) on receiving news of any mishap striking a close family member or while trying to locate a missing person…

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Similar Story

A poor health report card for Maharashtra ahead of polls: Jan Arogya Abhiyan

Maharashtra govt scores only 23 on 100 in an analysis on health parameters by Jan Arogya Abhiyan, a group of NGOs and health care professionals.

The past five years have seen public health crises, not only locally but globally. Considering this, it is only fair to expect that budgetary allocations for public health would be made more robust. But an analysis shows that the allocation of funds for public health has dropped, though the number of people seeking medical care from the public healthcare system has increased. Experts have pointed out that the public health budget for 2024-2025 is less than that for 2023-2024. Jan Arogya Abhiyan, a group of NGOs and healthcare professionals has released a health report card assessing the performance of the…

Similar Story

Fostering and caring for sick cats: A comprehensive resource guide

Bangalore Cat Squad volunteers highlight the resources available in Bengaluru for animal rescuers, fosters and cat parents.

In part 1 of this series, our Bangalore Cat Squad (BCS) volunteer wrote about her experience caring for her first rescued kitten, Juno. In the second part, we will guide readers on how to foster cats, and the process of adoption and caring for cats with feline distemper/simian parvovirus (SPV).   Therapists often recommend animal companionship, and many people have asked for our help in this regard. Using expert insights, we have developed methods to assess, assist, and enable adoptions for those grappling with mental health issues. Witnessing lives revitalised and spirits uplifted by the profound affection of a small…