Power failure kills 3 on dialysis at Pondy Government Hospital

The three, Sushila (75), Amsa (58) and Ganesan (55), all residents of Kadirgrammam area in Puducherry were undergoing dialysis when the power went off between 10.15 and 10.45 am. 

Sushila and Amsa died instantly while Ganesan died later after being shifted to the ICU immediately. 

On hearing about the crisis, duty doctors were called in but their resuscitation efforts failed. Police are yet to take action as they are awaiting word from the Union Territory government. A crowd ransacked the hospital as the news spread. 

Health Minister Malladi Krishna Rao, who rushed to the hospital after coming to know of the tragedy, announced an ex gratia relief of Rs five lakh each to the families of the three patients. 

Health and Family Welfare Services Director Dr KV Raman said that sudden “breakdown in power supply” resulted in the three patients collapsing at the free-of-cost dialysis unit where new equipment were recently installed.

Raman said a three-member committee comprising two nephrologists from other hospitals and the executive engineer of the Puducherry Electricity Department has been constituted to hold an enquiry and find out what went wrong. 

The hospital’s assistant medical superintendent Dr A Bupathy said the matter was being investigated as the dialysis machines had battery backup for nearly 15 minutes and the hospital also possessed a generator. The dialysis ward has seven machines out of which three were in use. All three patients attached to the machines succumbed.

Hospital authorities have placed a doctor, four nurses and a technician under suspension.