No doctor to give CPR, 71-yr-old dies at Jammu hospital

Banihal, Jammu August 21

A 71-year-old man died on Wednesday, allegedly because there was no one to administer Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) to him at a hospital in Ramban district, an official said.

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

A video of Altaf trying to revive his father on a hospital bed has gone viral since. Half an hour after his arrival at the hospital, Bhat was rushed to the casualty room, where he was declared dead, a member of his family said.

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

"This office has received a video, wherein an attendant can be seen performing CPR on a 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 has been constituted to conduct an enquiry into 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 have been asked to submit their report within two days.