Man, 70, dies waiting for hours for treatment, family claims hospital negligence

A 70-year-old man died in Lucknow after allegedly being denied timely treatment as his family struggled through the night in search of an oxygen cylinder-equipped bed. The incident has raised serious questions about hospital preparedness and responsiveness.

Kashi Prasad Goswami, a resident of Sarojini Nagar in Lucknow, was taken to a private hospital on Thursday evening after he experienced severe difficulty breathing. Doctors there stabilised him briefly with oxygen support but referred him to King George's Medical University (KGMU) as his condition worsened.

According to Ashutosh Giri, the patient’s son-in-law, the family rushed to KGMU's trauma center hoping for immediate care. However, despite multiple requests, they were not provided a bed or oxygen support.

Giri claimed that the family waited for nearly four hours, with Goswami lying on a stretcher, but no doctor attended to him. "The staff kept telling us no beds were available. No one even came to check on him," Giri said.

Seeing no help likely in time, the family eventually returned to the same private hospital where he had initially been admitted. Unfortunately, Goswami died during treatment there.

Giri alleged complete negligence from both the private hospital and KGMU. "We kept asking for help, but all we got was silence. His oxygen was dropping constantly, and no one acted," he said.

However, the KGMU administration refuted claims of apathy and unresponsiveness and cited non-availability of beds for not admitting Goswami.

KGMU spokesperson Dr Sudhir Singh confirmed the patient was referred due to a lack of ventilator beds. "He was asked to wait, as no beds were available at the time," Dr Singh stated. The patient and his family left before any further arrangements could be made, he added.

The incident has sparked public outrage over the continued lack of emergency infrastructure in major government hospitals, especially in life-threatening situations.

The family has called for accountability from the hospital administration, demanding action against what they say was "preventable negligence".

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