The death of an 85-year-old coronavirus patient at the District Headquarters Hospital here in the early hours of Friday led to tension as the family members, along with relatives of several other patients, staged a protest, alleging negligence.
The health officials said that an ‘unruly mob’ barged into the ward violating the COVID protocols. Upon information, Chittoor Collector M. Hari Narayanan made senior officials rush to the spot and pacify the protesters.
District Coordinator of Health Services (DCHS) P. Saralamma told The Hindu that the patient collapsed when he was going to the toilet in the early hours and died. “An unruly mob from Punganur rushed into the hospital premises, ignoring the COVID protocols,” he said.
The family members of the old man and relatives of other patients undergoing treatment gathered in front of the hospital in the morning and staged a protest. They alleged that the patients were not being provided with nutritious food and that the staff forced them to skip food in the night on several occasions.
The protesters attributed the death of the patient to the neglect by the staff in the ward. It was further deplored that the body of the patient was left unattended for hours in the ward.
Meanwhile, Collector M. Hari Narayanan held an mergency meeting with the COVID Task Force personnel and said that a top priority should be given to tracing and testing of the contacts of the infected patients and triaging, apart from the right medication to the them.
COVID Control Room
Inspecting the COVID Control Room here, the Collector enquired about the number of phone calls being received from across the district. He said that prompt help was being extended to those seeking helkp of the centre.
The patients with respiratory problems are being shifted to the COVID Care Centres and hospitals and those under home isolation have been strictly advised to reach out the triage centres for proper diagnosis and healthcare services.
