Doctors slam Railways after TTE does CPR on elderly man who had a heart attack: 'He was awake'

Doctors requested the Railways to delete the video as performing CPR on a conscious patient can lead to multiple rib fractures and cause death. Meanwhile, an activist, Dr Vishnu Rajgadia, has filed an RTI request enquiring the TTE's medical training and details of Railways' investigation of the incident.

Ankita Sengupta

November 24, 2024 / 18:54 IST

The incident happened in the general coach of a train running from Amritsar to KIR station in Bihar. (Image credit: @RailMinIndia/X)

The Ministry of Railways on Saturday shared a video of a travelling ticket checker (TTE) performing CPR on a 70-year-old passenger who allegedly suffered a heart attack during the train ride. The clip meant to laud the Railway employee, has attracted the ire of doctors and medical professionals as the patient was conscious and performing CPR on someone who is "awake" is a violation of medical protocols and can result in legal liability.

Hailing the TTE as a "life saver", the Railway Ministry wrote on X that the incident had happened in the general coach of Amrapali Express which runs from Amritsar in Punjab to Katihar Junction station in Bihar.

"While travelling in the general coach of train number 15708 'Amrapali Express', a 70-year-old passenger suffered a heart attack. The TTE deployed there immediately gave CPR and saved the life of the passenger. The passenger was then sent to the hospital at Chhapra railway station," the post read. The video also showed the TTE performing mouth-to-mouth breathing on the man who was visibly conscious and responsive. The artificial respiration method involves blowing air into an unconscious person's lungs to help them breathe.

15708 ' ' 70 CPR pic.twitter.com/vxqsTEkir7
Ministry of Railways (@RailMinIndia) November 23, 2024

Medical professionals reacted to the "misleading" video in horror and requested the Railways to delete it from social media, afraid it would influence people incorrectly.

"Performing CPR on a patient who is conscious is very dangerous and wrong," commented Dr Аshїsh Рrаdhаn (@DrAshishPradhan). "This is no joke. CPR is a life-saving procedure. Please delete this video so that people don't lose lives over misinformation."

Dr Nawazish Khan (@docman_nhk) wrote, "CPR is not performed on conscious patients. The procedure is reserved exclusively for those who are unresponsive & not breathing or have an ineffective pulse. Performing CPR on a conscious patient violates medical protocols & can result in legal liability for the responder."