25-year-old dies at Kalamassery Medical College hospital; relatives allege negligence
In yet another case of medical negligence, a 25-year-old patient died at the Government Medical College Hospital, Kalamassery, allegedly due to denial of medical care.
Published: 27th March 2017 01:54 AM | Last Updated: 27th March 2017 01:54 AM | A+A A-
KOCHI: In yet another case of medical negligence, a 25-year-old patient died at the Government Medical College Hospital, Kalamassery, allegedly due to denial of medical care.
Thevakkal-native Jerin Michael, who visited the hospital around 6.30 am on Saturday with stomach ache, died around 11.20 pm.
Jerin’s relatives alleged he was denied proper medical care. The Edathala police have registered a case of unnatural death, and recorded the statement of Jerin’s relatives.
“The cause of death can be ascertained only after receiving the postmortem report,” said Kalamassery CI S Jayakrishnan.
Jerin was allegedly left unattended though he was suffering from severe stomach ache. When the person who accompanied Jerin alerted, the nursing staff administered an injection on him at 1 pm. Then, he was reportedly informed a surgery could be performed on him free of cost, if he was willing to wait for a few days.
According to the relatives, Jerin had seizures at night, but was left unattended.
“The hospital staff asked the bystander to shake the the patient until the seizure stopped, which proved to be ineffective. When Jerin’s condition deteriorated, the staff wrapped him in a bed sheet and took him to the ICU. They had to carry him by stairs as the lift was not working. By the time they reached the ICU, it was too late,” said the relatives.
Jerin’s friend Vyshakh said his condition was not very serious, which according to him was a suspected case of food poisoning. Jerin, an Engineering student, was living with his grandmother. His parents had predeceased him.
Meanwhile, the Director of Medical Education (DME) ordered a probe into the incident. Medical College principal V K Sreekala said they were awaiting the autopsy report.
On Sunday, various political parties staged protests in front of the hospital, seeking action against the hospital authorities.
The body has been shifted to the Alappuzha Medical College for postmortem.
Last year, MBBS student Shamna Thasneem had died after an injection was administered on her at the Kalamassery Medical College.
