A customer found my number, reached out and requested an ambulance for dialysis. He checked if he can pay after few days. Sure, I said. Today I messaged reminding him of payment. His wife called me. The patient passed away 2 days ago. She checked if she can pay in few days #Tears
The wife took the husband to a hospital (same one where the dialysis was going on), but the hospital refused to admit till some money is paid. Because of lockdown, the cash position of the patient was precarious so they couldn't deposit the amount. 2/4
She decided to take an auto-rickshaw (no money for ambulance, and in India, hospital doesn't provide an ex-hospital ambulance if not admitted) and take him to a nearby govt. hospital. He passed away in the tuk-tuk 10 min away from the hospital. 3/4
Surprising thing is that they are well to do, just illiquid in terms of cash; the lockdown is a terrible thing for a small businessman that relies on daily cashflows. Non-Covid related deaths are increasing and we should be cognizant of these. 4/4
