Doctor, staff administer oxygen to dead patient!

• Death news hidden from family for six hours
• Doctor reportedly reached a compromise with them

Jammikunta (Karimnagar): Believe it or not! A doctor and the staff of a nursing home here fixed an oxygen mask to the body of a patient, who died six hours earlier fearing agitation by his relatives.

When questioned by them and the media, Dr. Sudhakar Rao, owner of Mamatha Nursing Home, claimed that the victim, Karetpalli Srinivas (30), who had attempted suicide by consuming pesticide, died at around 5 pm on Wednesday after suffering a heart attack, while undergoing treatment. His parents are farmers.

Dr. Rao sought to blame the staff saying that they might have given oxygen to the body on their own. ‘They might not have been aware of the patient’s death,’ he said. He allegedly told the relatives that Srinivas had to be rushed to Warangal for further treatment to Warangal, hiding the death from them for nearly six hours. After the death news was conveyed to the relatives at around 7 p.m., they staged a demonstration.

They argued with Dr Rao, claiming the staff had told them that they gave oxygen on the doctor’s instructions. Later in the night, Dr Rao and relatives agreed for a compromise settlement, following which amount was paid to the victim’s family.

Srinivas allegedly resorted to suicide after being scolded by his parents for being a vagabond.

He was married to Laxmi a year ago. They have a three-month-old son.