Doctor was 'glued' to his phone, says son of woman who died of heart attack in UP hospital

CCTV footage of the incident has been doing rounds on social media and has sparked outrage. (Image credit: Hate Detector/X)

A 60-year-old woman, who was brought to the emergency ward of a hospital in Uttar Pradesh after suffering a heart attack, died after she was left unattended by a doctor for nearly 15 minutes. The deceased's family has alleged that crucial time was lost as the on-duty doctor watched reels on his phone, the Times of India reported.

Pravesh Kumari was rushed to Mainpuri district hospital around noon on Tuesday. The doctor on duty, Dr Adarsh Sanger ordered a nurse to handle the patient while he sat "glued to his phone" despite repeated requests by the patient's relatives. When Kumari's condition worsened, her son raised his voice to protest the inaction and was allegedly slapped by Dr Sanger. As the situation escalated, the police were called in.

CCTV footage of the incident doing rounds on social media has sparked outrage.

"My brothers and I brought our mother to the emergency ward of the Mainpuri government hospital. Her condition was serious and we laid her down on the stretcher," Kumari's son Guru Sharan Singh said. The doctor was at his desk watching reels while the compounder and the nurse were attending to other patients, he added. After Kumari was brought in, the doctor gave instructions to the compounder and the nurse and they treated Kumari as if she was a patient suffering from cough and cold, Singh told the publication.

"My brothers and I were in complete distress. We were rubbing her arms and feet as we didn't know what else to do. This went on for 15 minutes until suddenly, blood began to ooze out of my mother's mouth. We were terrified and didn't know what to do. The doctor was still sitting in his chair. When he finally came towards us, it was in anger. He then slapped me," Singh said.

Meanwhile, chief medical superintendent Dr Madan Lal told the Times of India that the matter was reported to higher authorities and investigation was underway. "If found guilty, strict action will be taken against those responsible," he said.