Ajit Kumar Puri, a doctor at Ganpati Hospital, was accused of performing surgery without skills and watching Youtube tutorials, leading to the death of the patient.
Puri is accused of causing the death of a 15-year-old boy who underwent surgery to remove gallstones while watching a YouTube video. He worked at Ganpati Hospital in Saran, Bihar. Puri, according to the complaint, practiced without the necessary knowledge or skills of a surgeon.
The 15-year-old patient’s family said they took him to the hospital in mid-September because he was vomiting repeatedly. He was admitted and his symptoms subsided, but Dr. Puri recommended surgery to remove the gallstones that were causing the vomiting.
After sending the patient’s father to run some errands, Puri operated without the family’s consent, causing the boy’s condition to deteriorate suddenly. The doctor eventually decided to transfer the patient to another hospital, but the boy died on the way. Puri fled, leaving the patient’s body at the hospital.
The patient’s family accused Dr. Puri of lacking surgical skills, leading to the patient’s death. During the preparation for the surgery, he even opened a YouTube video on how to remove gallstones to watch.
“We admitted him to hospital and the vomiting stopped soon. But Dr Ajit Kumar Puri said surgery was needed. He performed the surgery by watching a YouTube video. My son died,” the boy’s father told NDTV.
“The child was in pain. When we asked the doctor why he was in so much pain, he got angry. That night, my child stopped breathing and had to be given CPR and was taken to Patna Hospital. He died on the way. They left my child’s body on the hospital stairs and fled,” the family said.
An Indian doctor was accused of not knowing how to perform surgery and had to watch tutorials on Youtube. Photo: Unplash
The family has filed a police complaint against Dr Puri, who is awaiting the results of an autopsy. Meanwhile, the doctor has gone missing, leading both the victim’s family and the police to suspect that he may not even be a doctor.
Fake doctors are not uncommon in India. Earlier this year, a man was caught practicing medicine in Mumbai using his wife’s medical degree. A few years ago, India also investigated a man who worked at 16 private hospitals while impersonating a doctor.