Kendrapara: A helpless patient with the Hepatitis B disease appealed to Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik for death to relieve suffering.

Tukuna Nauri, a resident of Balisahi village under Mahakalpada Block in Kendrapara district, is a Hepatitis B patient with chronic health conditions. He has been undergoing treatment at Kendrapara District Headquarters Hospital (DHH) for the past month.

The bedridden patient developed complications of bed sores and paraplegia (paralysis from the waist down) due to prolonged hospitalization.

Alleging medical negligence in his treatment, Nauri said that the hospital was not taking care of his personal hygiene. He is left on the bed with an extreme odor caused by poor hygiene.

According to reports, Nauri was working as a labourer in Gujarat, where he suffered Urinary Tract Infection. He underwent treatment at a hospital there for around one month. During this period, he developed complications of chronic back pain and became bedridden. As per doctors' advice, two of his friends shifted him to his village from Gujarat. With the help of villagers, he consulted the doctors at Kendrapara DHH and later the SCB Medical College and Hospital in Cuttack. The doctors advised him for treatment at home with intake of medicines regularly. However, apathy by his stepmother at home deteriorated his health condition. Following grievances received from the villagers, the district collector ordered to admit the patient at the DHH where he is under treatment for past one month.

Nauri alleged the hospital staff of not conducting regular dressing on bed sores. Even the artificial urinary catheter has not been replaced for long days and no attendant is visiting his bed due to bad odor.

He said that he has approached the district authorities from collector to CDMO in this regard, but nobody paid heed to his grievance.

However, the hospital authorities dismissed his allegation of medical negligence.

"No medical negligence has been done in treatment of the Hepatitis B patient. His organs below his waist are not functioning. As he is bedridden, this caused bed sores. This hospital lacks improved healthcare facility to provide treatment for these ailments. He needs better treatment that can be done at the SCB Hospital. However, we cannot relocate him to Cuttack due to shortage of attendant staff at the hospital," said Additional Chief Medical Officer Dr. Pramod Kumar Praharaj.