It seems that the entire country is taking the coronavirus as a disease while every other ailment takes a back seat, at least for hospitals in Agra. A 12-year-old child passed away due to severe 'stomach pain' as six hospitals denied treatment to the child in Agra. While the parents kept going from one hospital to the other, doctors kept saying that they cannot treat him.
The child has been identified as Nihal Singh and he was suffering from acute stomach pain. After being turned away by six private nursing homes and hospitals, his father went to SN Medical College, which is run by the government but they were refused treatment saying that the medical college was only meant for Covid patients and the child will be kept with coronavirus patients.
The family finally went to the police and the district administration on Saturday as Nihal's condition worsened. The family at this point was told to go back to the medical college. But unfortunately, Nihal could not make it and died.
The family while narrating the episode said that wherever they went with Nihal, they were told to stay away as everyone suspected him to be a COVID-19 patient.
His father Lakhan is a daily wager and he said that the child was already being treated for stomach pain. But on April 24 the child developed severe pain, fever and became breathless. The local doctor was called and he had prescribed some medicines but they did no good.
Nihal was rushed to a hospital at 11 am but the hospital staff denied treatment and the other five hospitals that the family went to were either shut or they refused to treat Nihal.
At the S.N. Medical College, the family was told that Nihal will be kept with coronavirus patients; the family refused as the child did not have COVID-19 infection.
In an advertisement taken out by the district administration; the five hospitals where the family went, were named by the DM that were supposed to treat people for other ailments as the medical college was only treating coronavirus patients. But the reality was something entirely different and the five hospitals were shut or refused treatment.
Police officials told the family to post their complaint to Twitter and tag the Chief Minister and DM office. The family did not know what Twitter was and how to use it, let alone making a Tweet. The family went to the DM's residence straight away but they were told to go back to SN Medical College but by the time they reached, it was too late and Nihal died.
His family now has one question, "Nihal was breathless and in extreme pain and he needed oxygen immediately. You tell me one thing, are hospitals going to treat coronavirus patients only? Do people not have any other illnesses? If he had been the son of the DM or any other official, would the hospitals have refused?"
The family now plans to lodge an FIR against the DM because they feel that if the DM can't handle Agra he should be removed.
