2nd Doctor Suspected of Covid-19 Dies in West Bengal, Test Reports Awaited

Kolkata: A senior orthopaedic surgeon from West Bengal, suspected to have Covid-19, died in Kolkata on Monday night. He was termed as ‘COVID-19 martyr’ by the West Bengal Orthopaedic Association (WBOA).

Dr Sisirkumar Mandal practiced in the Belle Vue hospital. While news agency ANI confirmed it as a Covid-19 death, there was no confirmation at the time of making this story live on whether Mandal died due to COVID-19 because in West Bengal there is an audit committee which segregates direct and co-morbid COVID-19 cases. The entire medical fraternity in Bengal is in a state of shock. The WBOA has demanded state honour for a 69-year-old doctor.

“Very sad to know that Dr. Sisir Mandal, Senior Orthopaedic Surgeon attached to Belle Vue Hospital in Kolkata passed away on 27th April night. My deepest condolence to his bereaved family members & colleagues. May God give them the strength to overcome this excruciating loss,” Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee tweeted.

This is the second case of doctor’s death in West Bengal related to Covid-19. On April 26, senior medical officer Dr Biplab Kanti Dasgupta had passed away after testing positive for the virus. Dasgupta was Assistant Director, Health Services, West Bengal. His wife has also tested positive and is currently under treatment at a government hospital.

After Dasgupta’s death, the West Bengal Doctor’s Forum (WBDF) released a condolence note and expressed concern over the present situation. “Over the last few weeks, more and more healthcare workers have been diagnosed with COVID-19, some of them even asymptomatic, while several others are in quarantine. We urge upon the health and administrative authorities to proactively look into the matter as it is a matter of grave concern. With limited resources at disposal, we cannot afford to have a situation where the shortage of healthcare providers poses a threat to delivery of care,” WBDF statement reads.

“We request the state administration to issue a seperate medical bulletin daily to appraise us about the condition of the healthcare workers under treatment and quarantine,” the Forum said.