A senior doctor who was working at a COVID-19 hospital in Delhi died early this morning. He was 56.
Doctor Asheem Gupta, was working as an anaesthesia specialist in the Lok Nayak Jai Prakash (LNJP) hospital, which has been declared a COVID-19 hospital. Mr Gupta had tested positive on June 6, the LNJP hospital said in a statement.
“He was a frontline anesthesia specialist who contracted COVID-19 infection while on duty. He tested positive on June 6, when he had mild symptoms and was shifted to a quarantine facility. His symptoms aggravated on June 7 and he was admitted in the Intensive Care Unit of the LNJP Hospital,” the statement read.
The doctor was shifted to the Max Hospital in south Delhi on June 8 on his request, the statement said.
His condition deteriorated late on Saturday and he died few hours later, officials said.
“He lost the battle today after a valiant fight,” a senior official of the LNJP Hospital was quoted as saying by news agency PTI.
He was Specialist, Grade I, in the Department of Anesthesia at the LNJP Hospital, the statement said.
“This is a moment of pride. The whole country stands with us. This type of honour that we are getting is a sign that they are proud of us. We will try to fight this Coronavirus disease,” he had said when IAF showered flowers on health workers.
Dr Gupta is survived by his wife and two sons. His wife had also got infected with COVID-19 but she recovered a few days ago. One of his son is pursuing graduation in Engineering, while the other is studying medicine.
Chaman Varshney, a relative of the doctor said, “Dr Gupta and his wife have been in the medical practice for 30 years and have always prioritised serving the marginalised and poor. For the last 3 months he had successfully treated several patients.”
Over 300 doctors have lost their lives since the pandemic was first reported in the country seven months ago.
LNJP hospital was declared a COVID-19 dedicated hospital on March 17. Since then, it has successfully treated more than 2,700 coronavirus patients and sent them home.
Salute to Dr Asheem Gupta(56) Anesthesiologist,LNJP Hosp.Lost his life battling Corona.
Had spoken to him on May 3 aftr IAF flypast
"This is a moment of pride.The whole country stands with us.This honour shows that they're proud of us.We'll try to fight this disease"@ndtv (1/2) pic.twitter.com/oHIommEqPN— Sukirti Dwivedi (@SukirtiDwivedi) June 28, 2020
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal had recently praised the doctors at the hospital for their work during the pandemic. Lauding the doctors, he had said that the medics don’t go home or meet their family members for days on end fearing that the infection may spread.
“All doctors here have worked really hard. You can imagine how tough it is to work wearing PPE kits in this heat. We (the government) stand like a rock behind you. If you face any problem, we are there with you. We will work together to improve the facilities. Obviously, there is a scope for improvement,” Mr Kejriwal told the doctors.
Delhi is the worst-hit city in the country with over 80,000 cases. Over, 2,500 people have died due to the virus in the national capital so far.
