Kerala govt doctor slams poor conditions at medical college after patient’s death

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: A senior government doctor on Saturday strongly criticised the circumstances surrounding the recent death of a cardiac patient, who allegedly did not receive proper treatment at the state-run Government Medical College Hospital here.

Dr Haris Chirakkal, head of the Urology Department at the hospital, described the death of the patient, Venu, a native of Kollam, as "unfortunate" and "painful." Chirakkal, who recently drew attention to the shortage of surgical equipment and delays in procedures at the medical college, said Venu was made to lie on the floor of the hospital.

"How can a patient be made to lie on the floor? How can treatment be given that way? To make patients lie on the floor is uncivilised," he said while speaking at a programme here. The doctor said that more patients are now being made to lie on the floor at the government medical college than when he joined the institution as a student in 1986.

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Tertiary care centres need of the hour, says doctors

He said it was painful to learn that the patient had to travel a long distance to seek treatment at the hospital. Setting up medical colleges across the state would be of no use if such situations continued, he said, adding that tertiary care centres of super-speciality standards were the need of the hour.

The death of Venu, who was undergoing treatment for a heart condition at the Government Medical College Hospital here, had prompted allegations of medical negligence from his family.

While the hospital’s medical superintendent denied the family’s claims, the Congress-led UDF opposition blamed the state government and Health Minister Veena George for his death on Wednesday night.

In a recent Facebook post, Chirakkal had pointed out that the shortage of essential medical equipment had led to the postponement of surgeries and alleged that repeated assurances from authorities had failed to resolve the issue, leaving patients in severe pain while waiting for timely treatment. His remarks had led to political criticism against the state government and the health department.