Man, 63, dies after avoiding hospital

Man, 63, dies after avoiding hospital

Sunitha.Rao@timesgroup.com

Bengaluru:  18.04.2021 

A 63-year-old man who ignored the advice of getting admitted to a hospital after testing positive died at his home five days later. The man, from Taralu village in Bangalore Urban district, did not tell his family members that he had Covid-19 and switched off his phone. They learned about it while checking the phone following his demise on April 16.

Relatives believe he hid his health status as he feared hospitalisation costs and social stigma. The senior citizen worked as an attender at a club near Jayanagar. He developed acute fatigue and got admitted to Sevakshetra Hospital on April 9. A test revealed on April 11 that he had contracted the coronavirus infection. The hospital, which didn’t treat Covid-19 patients at the time, advised him to seek treatment at another facility and discharged him. But instead of visiting another hospital, the man went home, where he died on April

16. The last rites were performed as per Covid-19 safety protocols after a mediaperson coordinated with the health department.

“We found out that he had Covid-19 only after his death. We accessed his phone and saw the message. The hospital that discharged him should have alerted government authorities,” a relative said.

According to information on the Covid hospital bed management system, the 63-year-old was allotted a bed at Oxford Medical College on April 15. A medical officer at the Bolare primary health centre, which covers Taralu village, said the man refused to get hospitalised even after his condition worsened. “Health and ASHA workers visited his house multiple times and explained to him that he required hospitalisation. A gram panchayat member also tried to persuade him, but to no avail,” the medical officer said.

Dr Ranganath Nayak, medical director, Sevakshetra Hospital, told STOI that doctors had clearly explained everything to the man. “When he was discharged on April 11, we didn’t have a Covid ward. We are a charitable hospital, mostly with geriatric patients. We could not have accommodated a Covid-19 patient then and we told him the same. He refused to understand the gravity of the situation,” said Dr Nayak. The hospital started admitting Covid-19 cases three days ago.

Patient refused admission when ASHA workers visited his house. What more can health dept do if patients and their families do not cooperate?

Dr Srinivas Gulur | HEALTH OFFICER, BENGALURU URBAN