May 24 2017 : The Times of India (Chennai)

Patient dies after ward boy keeps brick under his 

head

Priyangi Agarwal

Bareilly





A picture of an emergency patient lying on a stretcher with a brick placed under his head, which was tweeted to state health minister Siddharth Nath Singh, drew his attention and the minister ordered a probe into the matter on Tuesday . The inquiry revealed that a ward boy who has now been suspended had placed the brick under the patient's head when he complained of headache. The patient later died. According to the officials at the district hospital, 42 year-old Najeemuddin Ansari was admitted to emergency ward of district hospital early on Monday . Najeemuddin had a head injury . After an X-ray of his head, the patient was being taken on a stretcher to the emergency ward when the ward boy placed a brick under his head.“We received an email from the state government and were asked to take immediate action into the matter. I directed two of our doctors, Dr V K Dhasmana and Dr Karmendra, to probe the matter. The inquiry report stated that when the patient was being shifted from X-ray room to the emergency ward, he complained of headache.In case of a head injury, we do not keep pillow under the head of the patient. However, after the patient complained of headache on his way to emergency ward, the ward boy picked a brick lying on the roadside and placed it under his head,“ said Dr K S Gupta, chief medical superintendent, district hospital.
Action is also being taken against a nursemaid present when a brick was placed under the patient's head.
“As it was an inhuman act, ward boy Baljeet has been suspended. Besides, I have written to the private agency from which we have outsourced ward nursemaid, Poonam, to transfer her elsewhere. As she is not our employee, I cannot take direct action against her,“ said Dr Gupta who has forwarded the report to the state government. After the patient succumbed to his injuries on Tuesday , his family took the body home.