Tumor patient

From Berita Buana

In response to the letter published in Berita Buana on July 20, 1994, entitled The hope of Iswandi who suffers from tumor, we would like to give the following comments.

We can understand what you feel after having been treated for more than two months in Cipto Mangunkusumo General Hospital (RSCM) without palpable result. In general, all patients that arrive at the hospital daily are in a state of anxiety that could lead to misunderstanding or lack of communication between the patient/family and the doctors and nurses.

It should be noted that RSCM has to give direct treatment to about 3,000 out-patients daily, and to serve 900-1,000 hospitalized patients. Each of the hospitalized persons is attended by three to four relatives of the patient, so that the hospital staff has to deal with 3,600 people, and they are sometimes hard to manage.

The tense situation that arose due to your despair because your disease is virtually incurable has caused a misunderstanding which led you to feel that you were being treated like a "guinea pig." In fact your disease is already in an advanced stage, which made it extremely difficult for the doctor and nurses to give effective treatment.

Moreover the medicine given you was expensive and could do no more than simply relieve you from pain. It was too great a burden for RSCM to provide that medicine, mainly because of budget constraints. Please note that last year alone RSCM had to spend billions of rupiah to provide free treatment for patients who could not afford the medical cost themselves.

Sending you home does not mean that we drove you away from the hospital. We felt it would be more restful and convenient for you if you were among your relatives at home, away from the tense situation and uncertainty you experienced almost daily while being treated in the hospital. Our decision was also based on the fact that the hospital could not promise an easy cure for your disease. We sympathize with you and hope you can understand our position.

DR. M. AHMAD DJOJOSUGITO MPH

RSCM Director