Bengaluru: Heart attack victim dies on road as doctors, passersby fail to provide timely help

Bengaluru:

A stark reflection of societal apathy and the shortcomings in emergency healthcare unfolded on Monday in Bengaluru, when a man died of a heart attack after being denied timely medical attention. 34-year-old Venkataramanan, a resident of Ittamadu, allegedly experienced severe chest pain at around 3:30 am on Monday. He had a history of mild heart attacks, and this time his condition deteriorated rapidly.

Family members stated that due to the unavailability of an ambulance or any other immediate assistance, his wife took him to the hospital on a bike. They first reached a private hospital nearby, where treatment was allegedly denied citing the unavailability of a doctor. They then went to another private hospital, where an ECG revealed a mild heart attack.

They were advised to take Venkataramanan to the Sri Jayadeva Institute of Cardiovascular Sciences. The victim’s family alleges that the hospital neither started emergency treatment nor arranged an ambulance for them.

Entire episode recorded in CCTV

Without an ambulance, the couple set off for Jayadeva Hospital on a bike. En route, their bike met with an accident. Following the accident, Venkataramanan suffered on the road while his wife pleaded for help. The entire scene was recorded on a nearby CCTV camera, but no passerby stopped for several minutes.

Finally, a cab driver intervened and helped take Venkataramanan to the nearest hospital, where doctors declared him dead.

Mother loses only surviving son

Venkataramanan worked as a garage mechanic. He got married in January 2020 and is survived by his wife and two children. He was his mother’s only surviving son, the other five having passed away earlier.

Despite this tragedy, the family set an example of humanity as Venkataramanan’s eyes were donated.