Tiruvarur woman on ventilator dies; Kin blame power cut, Dean denies

TIRUCHY: A woman, who was under ventilator support at the Tiruvarur GH, breathed her last on Sunday and her kin blamed the unscheduled outage at the hospital as the reason.

Relatives charged that she died as the ventilator stopped working due to power failure in the Tiruvarur Medical College Hospital, but the Dean on Monday rejected the charges saying the hospital had a power backup and multiple health complications were the reason for the woman’s death.

Sources said that Amaravathi (48), a resident of Manavaram near Kuthalam in Mayiladuthurai, had some respiratory issues and was admitted to the Mayiladuthurai GH on Saturday.

As Amaravathi’s condition worsened, she was referred to the Tiruvarur Medical College Hospital where she was kept under ventilator support from Saturday morning. However, she succumbed on Sunday.

Soon, relatives, who gathered at the hospital, claimed that Amaravathi died after the ventilator stopped working due to power failure. They also submitted a petition to the Dean. Relatives shared the video of the power failure in the hospital, which incidentally went viral. Meanwhile, Dean Dr Joseph Raj, who met media persons on Monday, said, Amaravathi was brought in a critical condition with severely infected lungs, so she was kept under a ventilator.

“Suddenly, the power went off for five to seven minutes, but we have power back up. While the other five patients kept under ventilator support survived, Amaravathi alone died, and her death was due to the severe health complications. The power cut is not the reason for her death,” the Dean said.

The Dean also said responding to the complaint given by Amaravathi’s relatives, an inquiry committee, headed by the Resident Medical Officer, would be formed to investigate the issue. The committee would inquire with doctors, nurses, and the other para-medical staff, who were on duty during the said time, and submit a report, the Dean added.