No doctor to give him CPR, elderly dies at Jammu hospital; inquiry ordered

Banihal/Jammu, Aug 21 (PTI) A 71-year-old man died on Wednesday allegedly because there was no one to give him CPR at a hospital in Ramban district, an official said.

Ghulam Nabi Bhat, who was suffering from Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease, was rushed to Sub-District Hospital in Banihal by his son Altaf Ahmad, but he was forced to perform Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) on him because there was no doctor or paramedical staff available at the moment.

A video of the son trying to revive his father on a hospital bed has gone viral since.

After half an hour since his arrival at the hospital, Bhat was rushed to the casualty room, where he was declared dead, a member of his family said.

Chief Medical Officer Ramban Kamal Jee Zadoo has ordered an inquiry into the incident.

“This office has received video wherein it has been seen that one attendant is performing CPR to the patient in the casualty room but no doctor is on duty at that time. To ascertain the facts of the complaint … a (two-member) committee is constituted to conduct the enquiry in the matter in depth,” Zadoo said in an order.

District health officer Mohd Iqbal Malik and Medical Officer Mohd Syed have been appointed as the inquiry officers and asked to submit their report within two days.