Two-year-olds death sparks stir at hospital

CHENNAI: The parents of a two-year-old boy, who succumbed to burn injuries on Monday, staged a protest at the Kilpauk Medical College Hospital after blaming medical negligence for his death.Later, the protest grew when Radhika, a transgender and a relative of the victim’s father,  mobilised around 20 other transgenders to support the bereaved couple.According to Inspector Murugan from the Fort police station, the child, Jeeva was playing inside a hut in Anna Sathya Nagar near Fort St George on July 20 when a pot of boiling water fell on him. “When we visited the child, he appeared to be recovering and the doctor told the parents that he stood a decent chance of recovery,” he added.However, Kilpauk Medical College Hospital medical superintendent said that the child’s condition was serious. He said his burns spread to “thirty per cent on the stomach, groin and feet”. After five days in the ICU, Jeeva’s condition reportedly worsened on Sunday night and he died. His parents, Gopinath and Meenakshi, alleged that the doctors had let the oxygen run dry, which led to the child’s death.  The protestors arrived after a complaint of death due to negligence was received at the Kilpauk police station. The protest, which started at 2 am, ended three hours later and the protesting transgenders left the hospital premises only after police officials and hospital authorities intervened. Sources in the police said that though an inquiry was yet to be conducted, the initial probe did not suggest that the doctors were at fault.