No Smartphone, No Treatment: Patients Suffer at GMC Baramulla

Digital-Only Ticket System Sparks Anger, Poor and Elderly Worst Hit

UMAR RASHID

Baramulla, Oct 15: A wave of frustration has gripped patients at the Government Medical College (GMC) Baramulla after the hospital made it mandatory to generate OPD tickets online through smartphone-based OTP verification. The move, aimed at pushing the Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission (ABDM), has ended up excluding those who don’t own smartphones — mostly the poor, elderly, and rural patients.

On Wenesday morning, a man from Baramulla town arrived at the hospital with his young daughter Fatima, hoping to consult a pediatrician. However, his visit ended in disappointment when the ticket counter staff told him he could not register without a smartphone. “I have a simple keypad phone. The counter employee said OTP will come only on a smartphone. I waited for hours, but they refused to give me a ticket. I had to leave helplessly,” the father said, his voice filled with pain.

A similar story came from an old man from Uri, who had traveled long hours for orthopedic treatment. “I don’t have a mobile phone. I don’t understand what OTP means. I returned home untreated,” he said, adding that the system seems designed for the educated, not for ordinary patients like him.

When contacted, GMC Baramulla officials defended the move, stating that the order comes from higher authorities under the Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission. “We are required to digitally register all patients so that their health records are available online. Baramulla’s performance under this mission was low, so we have been told to strictly follow the digital ticketing process,” an official explained.

The official added that staff members are available to help patients without smartphones, but admitted that one employee can only assist around 15 patients using their own devices. “We try our best, but the patient rush is high,” he said.

Local residents and social activists have criticized the administration, calling for immediate intervention. “Digital reforms are welcome, but they should not come at the cost of human suffering,” said one attendant outside the hospital.

Citizens have urged the government to launch public awareness and on-site help desks to ensure that patients — especially the elderly and economically weak — do not face denial of treatment due to digital dependency.