Emergency services hit amid clash after patient dies in private hospital

The 60-year-old patient was brought to the hospital emergency last night and was in the need of an intensive care unit (ICU) bed.

The family members of a patient who died of Covid-19 and security staff at the emergency department of the Indraprastha Apollo hospital clashed on Tuesday morning, leading to injuries to several people, officials said.

The patient died at around 8 am after which the family and some local goons started vandalising the emergency department.  (HT photo)

A 60-year-old woman was brought to the hospital emergency ward last night. She required an intensive care unit (ICU) bed. However, there were no ICU beds available, a hospital official said.

“She was given oxygen and first aid in the emergency department. The doctors had requested the family to take her to another hospital as there were no ICU beds available at Apollo and the patient was crashing,” the official said. The woman died at around 8am, after which her family and some alleged local residents vandalised the emergency department. In the clip, the security staff could also be seen hitting people with sticks.

In a statement on Tuesday, the hospital said, “Unfortunately, the patient died at around 8 am, post which the patient’s family members resorted to vandalism, destruction of hospital property and assault on our doctors and staff. The situation was brought under control through hospital security staff and use of the police. While the hospital deeply condoles the death of the patient, it is deeply shocked at the behaviour of the patient’s family against doctors and healthcare workers who are providing untiring services amidst the pandemic.”

The hospital had to suspend emergency services for around two hours after the incident, officials said.

According to the police, the only people injured in the incident were the two sons of the dead woman. RP Meena, deputy commissioner of police (south-east), said that no complaint to the police was made by either side until Tuesday evening. “No one from the hospital is injured,” Meena said.

The DCP said the family of the woman brought her to Apollo Hospital around 2am on Tuesday after she tested positive for Covid-19. “They brought their own oxygen. Since there was no bed available at the hospital, they waited until morning, but the woman died,” the DCP said.

Her death led to a heated exchange between her relatives and the hospital guards. “The patient’s relatives and the hospital guards then clashed and two sons of the deceased suffered injuries. No one from the hospital was injured,” said the DCP.