Shocking: Delhi nurse on COVID-19 duty struggles to get treatment after testing positive

Pinky Gautam, a nurse at Delhi's Guru Tej Bahadur Hospital, was recently subjected to possibly the worst circumstance that a healthcare worker could ever imagine. Having been at the forefront of the novel coronavirus fight for months, Pinky emerged a savior for many COVID-19 patients. However, it is extremely unfortunate that she had to go through a day-long struggle to get someone to look after her when she got infected with the fatal virus.

As per a News18 report, Pinky had tested positive for COVID-19 on Tuesday, April 21, and was not able to find a hospital that was ready to admit her for at least the next 24 hours. Narrating her ordeal, her husband DK Gautam said, "It was during the afternoon on a working day when Pinky was found to be COVID-19 positive. For almost an entire day, she languished outside hospital premises, thirsty and hungry, before finally securing a bed."

How did Pinky contract COVID-19?

Pinky, who has been selflessly serving as a nurse for over six long years, was exposed to the novel coronavirus at the start of April. Gautam recounts that his wife was given the duty of taking care of a COVID-19 positive woman, who was battling for life on a ventilator.

"Pinky was attending to an elderly woman in the ICU. The woman had been symptomatic but was not yet tested for COVID-19. On the day her samples were taken, she died. And her test results came out to be positive the very next day," said Gautam.

Fearing a possible contraction, Pinky immediately undertook the novel coronavirus test, which came out to be negative. But, several days later, she started to develop the dreaded symptoms and took the test again. The results came out positive this time.

Venting out his frustration, Gautam blasted the Arvind Kejriwal-led Delhi government for the unforeseen situation, saying, "They have promised Rs 1 crore to the families of those who die in the line of duty. But why can't they ensure that nobody dies from such apathy in the first place?"

The novel coronavirus outbreak in the national capital has worsened over the last couple of weeks. At present, there are 2,376 COVID-19 cases in Delhi, including 808 recoveries and 50 deaths.