Baby with Covid dies after being ‘abandoned’ by parents who ‘feared catching virus’ – World News
A baby with Covid died after being abandoned by its parents because they feared they would catch the virus, it has been reported.
The two-month-old child tested positive before dying on Sunday evening in the Shri Maharaja Gulab Singh Hospital in the Jammu region of India.
Medical Superintendent Dr Dara Singh said the baby was admitted at around 7am but died hours later.
“The baby was suffering from congenital heart disease and other problems and he died of cardiac arrest at around 8pm,” he said, reports India Today.
“Soon after cardiac arrest, [an] RAT test was done which came [back] positive, after which we asked his parents to undergo Covid test as well, but instead of going for testing, they ran away.”
The parents have continually failed to respond to calls from the hospital with the baby’s body in the facility’s mortuary, it has been reported.
(Image: AFP via Getty Images)
The Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir reported 3,733 new Covid-19 cases and 51 deaths on Monday.
Of these, 35 deaths were registered in Jammu division.
It comes as India postponed exams for trainee doctors and nurses on Monday, freeing them up to fight the world’s biggest surge in coronavirus infections.
The health system is crumbling under the weight of new cases and hospitals run out of beds and oxygen.
The total number of infections so far rose to just short of 20 million, propelled by a 12th straight day of more than 300,000 new cases in a pandemic sparked by a virus first identified in central China at the end of 2019.
(Image: Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)
(Image: AFP via Getty Images)
Medical experts say actual numbers in India could be five to 10 times higher than those reported.
The UK is set to send 1,000 extra ventilators, on top of the 200 already earmarked, and 495 oxygen concentrators and three oxygen generation units sent last week.
NHS England will also establish a clinical advisory group to work with Indian authorities.
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Announcing the move, Boris Johnson said: “The terrible images we have seen in India in recent weeks are all the more powerful because of the close and enduring connection between the people of the UK and India.
“I am deeply moved by the surge of support the British people have provided to the people of India and am pleased the UK Government has been able to play our part in providing life-saving assistance.
“The UK will always be there for India in its time of need.”
