A 43-year-old woman in Rajasthan’s Bhilwara who attempted suicide tragically died inside an ambulance after its doors got stuck for 20 minutes outside a government hospital.
The station house officer (SHO) in Pratapnagar, Surjeet Tholiya, said, “The woman on Sunday evening attempted suicide. She was immediately found by his family who rushed her to the hospital as she was still alive. However, she died inside the ambulance in front of the hospital after its gates got locked for over 20 minutes due to a malfunction.”
“The gate suddenly malfunctioned after the family members and staff got off the vehicle and were bringing out the victim’s stretcher. Then, the staff and her elder son had to bring her out by breaking open the window. But she was immediately declared dead by the time,” Tholiya added.
“The family had also alleged negligence by the ambulance’s medical staff which is being probed,” he said.
The victim’s son claimed, “The ambulance driver had initially driven in the wrong direction for about 2 kilometres that wasted a lot of time. Later, we were also trying to give sufficient oxygen to my mother, but the cylinder didn’t have much. We told the ambulance staff but they didn’t pay heed. My mother was however still alive.”
“Despite all the issues, we tried to reach the hospital as quick as possible. But she couldn’t survive when the gates malfunctioned. The hospital authority killed my mother”, the son added.
“The ambulance has been seized,” Tholiya said, adding that a case was lodged according to the family’s allegation against the ambulance staff. Further probe is underway.”
Meanwhile, the Bhilwara district chief medical and health officer, Dr CP Goswami, said, “The gate malfunctioned due to the overcrowding. The staff were also well trained”, he said.
He further denied the lack of oxygen in the cylinders in the ambulance.
