COVID-19 Patient Hangs Himself After Hospital Denies Family Visit

A 57-year-old man from Chennai, India being treated for COVID-19 was found hanging at a private hospital in Kelambakkam Monday in an apparent suicide, local authorities said.

Workers at the hospital found the patient, identified as Rangan from Hasthinapuram in Chromepet, hanging by the window on the third floor of the hospital, the Times of India first reported. His body was reportedly recovered by police and was sent for a post-morten exam at Chengalpet government hospital.

Police said the patient was undergoing treatment at the hospital's corona ward since April 16.

Prior to his death, Rangan asked hospital staff if he could see his wife and daughters. The staff reportedly refused because his family could contract the virus and told Rangan to wait for a few days before he could see them.

Rangan was allegedly upset over the staff's decision and reportedly did not interact with medical personnel at the ward for the past two days.

The next day, a similar incident occured in Ludhiana, Punjab when another COVID-19 patient was found hanging from a fan in a hospital.

According to the police, the unnamed man was admitted to Ludhiana Civil Hospital Tuesday and was vaccinated, the New Indian Express reported. Hospital staff reportedly saw him at around 6 p.m. hanging from a fan, an hour after he was vaccinated.

Police said the man's death is still being investigated.

More studies are looking into the effects of the pandemic on the mental health of people, specifically the links between covid-related depression and suicide.

University of Manchester researchers published a research Tuesday that concluded suicide rates in England did not rise following the nation's first lockdown in 2020.

"Comparison of the suicide rates after lockdown began in 2020 for the same months in selected areas in 2019 showed no difference," the researchers wrote in the study.

A research published last year in the European Respiratory Journal, however, found that survivors of the virus that exhibited lingering symptoms were at significant risk of experiencing depression and post-traumatic stress disorder.

Medical professionals in France, on the other hand, were sounding the alarm over cases of hospital interns committing suicide due to long work weeks.

Interns should have 48-hour work weeks in theory, but a study carried out in 2019 found the figure was closer to 58 hours per week, France24 reported.