MUMBAI, Oct. 22 -- Patients are being denied the care they deserve at a civic hospital in Malad due to a peculiar problem - a missing register. Sources in the hospital, however, claim it's the other way round; the missing register is being used as an excuse to decrease the workload at the MW Desai Hospital, a peripheral hospital run by the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation. The register in question is the Medico-Legal Case (MLC) register, which the MW Desai Hospital has not been maintaining for years. As a result, all routine cases that require the police to be notified are referred to other hospitals. All government and municipal hospitals must maintain an MLC register for medico-legal cases, that is, cases that may require police intervention. This includes violence, falls, accidents, suicide attempts, animal bites, suspected sexual assault, underage pregnancies, and cases that involve possible foul play. Sources at MW Desai Hospital said patients with even minor injuries are turned away. "Even a patient who comes with a simple cut on the forehead is referred elsewhere, only because it would require a medico-legal entry," a staff member said. "A register can easily be maintained, but it's not being done, and that's now become a convenient way to reduce the workload. This is mainly being done in order to avoid court cases, maintain meticulous records, and police involvement as well." In one instance, a Malad East resident rushed his seven-year-old nephew to a nearby government hospital after the boy was hit by a two-wheeler near Film City Road in Goregaon. The child had suffered a deep cut on his forehead and needed stitches. "The government hospital said they do not treat these cases," he said. "So I went to MW Desai Hospital. There, they told me they could suture the wound but could not register an MLC because they didn't have that facility. We finally had to go to a trauma hospital, where we got the suturing, the MLC registration, and a CT scan done." The hospital is supposed to provide immediate first aid, make an entry in the MLC register, and inform the police. A doctor from another BMC-run hospital, requesting anonymity, said this has been a long-standing issue, especially in the outpatient department. "Routine cases are batted (a colloquial term for referring patients elsewhere to avoid taking responsibility). Once patients are told that an MLC will be filed, many prefer not to go to another hospital because they fear police intervention," the doctor said. "In many domestic violence or assault cases, that means the truth never comes out." MW Desai Hospital has 162 beds and a surgical department, making it equipped to handle most cases. However, its superintendent, Dr Arvind Ugale, said that while all in-patient cases are properly registered and the police informed, outpatient cases are referred to more advanced facilities. "But for routine cases like small cuts or suspected accidents, we refer them to other hospitals because we don't have the manpower or senior specialists to assess or follow up. Sometimes, patients need CT scans or further evaluation, and we cannot provide that here." Deputy municipal commissioner, Sharad Ughade, said, "This is a serious matter and we will hold discussions with the medical superintendents to resolve it and will take action."...