Man dies of H1N1 after being shifted against doc advice

NEW DELHI: A 25-year-old man with the H1N1 flu, who was on ventilator support, died while being shifted from Action Balaji Hospital to Ambedkar Hospital on Sunday. He was shifted by his relatives ‘‘against medical advice”, according to Action Balaji, which is a designated hospital for swine flu treatment.
Sumit Talwar was admitted to Action Balaji on December 4 where he tested positive for H1N1.As his condition was critical, he was put on ventilator support. But on Sunday morning, according to hospital authorities, his father wanted to shift him to Ambedkar Hospital.
According to Dr A P Chaudhari, medical director of Action Balaji, ‘‘They moved the patient against medical advice. We have got the necessary documents with us. We can’t stop a patient if he wishes to leave against medical advise. The family had arranged for a personal ambulance.”
The patient was declared dead at Ambedkar Hospital’s casualty ward. According to state health department officials, no official communication was made by Action Balaji Hospital either to Ambedkar Hospital or to the department about Talwar being shifted against medical advice. ‘‘It (Action Balaji) is a designated hospital for swine flu treatment. Even if the relatives wanted to shift him, the hospital should not have allowed Leave Against Medical Advice (LAMA) and made necessary arrangements for his transfer to a government hospital, said a health official.
When contacted, J P Singh, principal secretary (health), Delhi government, said, ‘‘The patient’s relatives should not have been allowed to take him. There is a procedure in place about shifting H1N1 influenza patients. Such patients cannot be allowed to leave a hospital like this. We will look into the matter tomorrow.” The health ministry has decided to institute an inquiry into the matter.
According to health minister Kiran Walia, ‘‘It is a serious matter. Hospitals can’t allow such patients to be shifted in this manner. I have initiated an inquiry and we will be meeting Action Balaji Hospital authorities tomorrow.’’ This is the 30th H1N1 death in the city. Meanwhile, 5826 cases of H1N1 infection had been confirmed in the capital till Saturday, of which 3402 were children.
toireporter@timesgroup.com