Berhampur: In a heart-wrenching incident, an elderly man died after wriggling in pain for around two hours following an alleged delay in treatment at a COVID19 hospital on Friday in Berhampur of Ganjam district, which has been worst-hit by Coronavirus.
According to reports, the victim was not even provided oxygen support on time, as a result of which he died on the hospital bed after squirming in pain for almost two hours.
The deceased, Pankaj Behera, a retired Berhampur Development Authority (BeDA) official and a resident of Engineering School Rajiv Nagar Area in the silk city was reportedly suffering from fever for the last two days. Sources said Pankaj’s son, Kishore Behera took him to the nearest City Hospital’s fever clinic for treatment. As per the protocol, the doctor at the hospital reportedly insisted on a COVID-19 test.
However, immediately after the swab samples were taken, Pankaj complained of breathlessness following which the doctor at the City Hospital advised Kishore to take his father to a COVID hospital where the patient could be put under immediate oxygen support. Acting on the doctor’s advice, Ashok shifted his ailing father to the dedicated COVID Health Centre-2 at Biju Patnaik Homeopathic Medical College in the city. But to the dismay of Ashok, his father was neither attended by doctors nor was provided oxygen support.
“There was no stretcher available at the hospital, so I had to carry my father through the staircase,” alleged Ashok.
He further alleged that, “The attendants in the COVID hospital didn’t have PPE kits & asked me to purchase one for them, so that they can attend my father wearing the same.”
Complying with the hospital staff, Ashok reportedly bought a PPE kit for them, but it was too late for Pankaj as his pulse had already faded away by then.
“The doctor was still nowhere to be seen when I brought the PPE kit. However, when the doctor finally came, my father had already passed away,” said Ashok.
Neither the medical authorities nor the district administration could be contacted for comments on the matter.
(Edited By Bikram Keshari Jena)
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