62-year-old man, a contact of Covid-19 positive case, dies in Nizamabad, Telangana

Nizamabad: A 62-year-old man, suspected to have been infected by the Covid-19 virus, died at the Government General Hospital (GGH) in Nizamabad, Telangana, late Sunday night even as hospital staff were shifting him to Gandhi Hospital in Hyderabad.

The dead man’s family reportedly attacked hospital staff, accusing them of medical negligence. Doctors said the victim had died after suffering a heart attack.

The deceased person was one of the 30 people who came in contact with a 63-year-old man from Quilla Crossroads locality of Nizamabad who tested positive for the coronavirus after returning from a religious programme in Delhi. He is currently in quarantine at Gandhi Hospital at Hyderabad.

All the persons who had had contact with this Covid-positive patient were placed in an isolation ward at GGH Nizamabad.

Doctors said the Covid suspect who died on Sunday was being shifted to the Gandhi Hospital in Hyderabad as his symptoms had turned severe.

Doctors said fear and stress might have caused the heart attack. A post-mortem report is awaited.

Speaking to Deccan Chronicle, GGH Nizamabad superintendent Dr M. Nageshwar Rao said the coronavirus suspect died due to a cardiac arrest as he was suffering with high blood pressure and diabetes. “Due to his age and health problem, we tried to shift him to Gandhi Hospital but he collapsed,” he explained.

Dr Nageshwar Rao said shocked family members questioned the doctors about the man’s death, and denied reports that hospital staff were attacked. All coronavirus suspects are being shifted to the isolation ward, he said.

The 11 persons who came in contact with the body of the deceased Covid-19 suspect have been shifted to the GGH isolation ward too. Blood samples taken from the deceased man were sent to Hyderabad for tests.