HYDERABAD: A private hospital in Kukatpally kept a 13-year-old girl on ventilator for three days in the guise of waiting for her Covid test result, only to pull the plug after her report came back negative. The hospital charged the girl’s parents Rs 3 lakh for the ventilator support.
They, however, could only pay around Rs 1.8 lakh. The hospital was initially unwilling to give away the body of the girl to her family without the full amount, but did so later. Speaking to Express, a relative of the girl said, “Three days ago, my niece was admitted to a private hospital in Kukatpally, after many other refused to take her in. She had severe breathing trouble. The hospital said she could be saved, but had to be tested for Covid-19.”
He said, “On Friday, when her parents went to the hospital, they were informed that their daughter tested negative for Covid-19 but there was no way she could be saved. With the consent of parents, who are not very educated, the hospital removed her from ventilator support. She died. If the hospital could not save her at all, then why did they keep her on ventilator in the guise of Covid-19 testing? It was just a ploy to earn money.”