NHRC summons Odisha Health Secy
The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has issued conditional summons to the Principal Secretary, Health and Family Welfare, Odisha, to appear before it on June 30 for Covid care mismanagement and lackadaisical attitude in submitting requisite reports to the commission so far.
The apex rights body passed the order acting on a petition filed by Human Rights activist and Supreme Court lawyer Radhakanta Tripathy. Earlier the Commission had sought Action Taken Report from the department on the death of two patients due to alleged medical negligence at the Dhenkanal District Headquarters Hospital.
According to the complaint, on September 14, 2020, Susant Prusty suffered from a heart attack on being informed that he was tested Covid positive and collapsed on the DHH verandah due to the negligence of medical staff and unattended by the doctors.
Earlier, on April 29 in a similar incident, a patient Kishor Chandra Sahoo of Dhenkanal town, who had respiratory problems, died due to delayed provision of oxygen and nebuliser by the hospital authorities to him.
According to petitioner Tripathy, immediate measures could have been taken by medical authorities to save their lives. However, by name of Corona pandemic, the entire medical facilities had collapsed.