BackCoronavirus: Delhi govt issues revised guidelines to handle dead bodies
The order has guidelines for deaths occurring in scenarios including at hospitals, covid-19 facilities, at home or an unclaimed body
PremiumThe Delhi government issued the revised standard operating procedure (SOP) to hospitals required to handle dead bodies of covid-19 patients. According to the order issued on Sunday night, a dead body brought to a hospital will not be tested for covid-19.
This comes at a time when the Aam Aadmi Party-led government faces criticism for under-reporting of coronavirus-related deaths in the national capital. Since the central government issued orders to hospitals to report fatalities, the total number of deaths has almost doubled in a week. According to the health bulletin shared on Monday, the total number of deaths in Delhi was at160, while over 10,000 people have tested positive so far.
The order has guidelines for deaths occurring in scenarios including at hospitals, coronavirus facilities, at home or an unclaimed body. The new guidelines said if the death of a patient occurs at a hospital or if a patient is brought dead, the hospital will provide a trained professional to handle the body.
The order said in case of an unclaimed body found at a public place and if the death does not fall in any of the covid-19 categories, the body will be handled by agencies such as the Delhi Police and local authorities. As per the order, any fatality will be counted as a result of the disease if a person had tested positive before his/her death.
PTI contributed to this story.
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