CHENNAI: A 19-year-old college student died while undergoing treatment at a private hospital for a finger injury near Sriperumbudur. His family staged a protest on Tuesday alleging medical negligence.
R Shyam was helping his father at their sugarcane juice stall in Perambur on Sunday when his hand was caught in the crushing machine, severely injuring a finger on his right hand.
He was initially treated at a private hospital before being referred to another private hospital in Thandalam. According to the family, doctors advised immediate surgery to amputate the injured finger. However, they alleged that the surgery was delayed until the evening and that two fingers were amputated despite being informed that only one would be removed.
They further alleged that Shyam’s condition deteriorated after the surgery and accused the hospital of medical negligence, claiming inexperienced doctors and trainees were involved in his treatment. Shyam died on Tuesday morning.
His relatives staged a protest outside the hospital, briefly preventing the ambulance from taking the body for postmortem. The protest was withdrawn after the Sriperumbudur DSP assured them that an inquiry would be conducted.
Police registered a case and shifted the body to Chengalpattu Government Hospital for autopsy. Sources said the case has also been referred to the Joint Director of Health Services, Kancheepuram, for an inquiry. Repeated attempts by TNIE to reach the private hospital for a response went unanswered.