Suspicious death of young female doctor
By Don Asoka Wijwardena
A 27-year-old lady doctor, attached to the Badulla Provincial hospital, died under mysterious circumstances at the hospital?s Intensive Care Unit at 6.15 p.m. on Sunday (3).
The cause of death has not been ascertained. The Badulla Magistrate has asked the police to send specimen of the body to the Government analyst for further investigation.
Badulla Provincial hospital Director Dr. Sampath Indika Kumara, when contacted, said that Dr. Ms. R. M. Priangika Gunasekare was an intern, who worked under a Consultant in two wards. She had fallen sick at 12.30 p.m. on June 3 in her quarters situated at the hospital premises.
He said that her sister had gone to see the doctor around 1.45 p.m. to hand over some books and had found the doctors lying on the floor with difficulty in breathing. The doctor was immediately admitted to the Emergency Treatment Unit from where she was subsequently transferred to the ICU.
Dr. Kumara added that the post-mortem examination was conducted and the cause of the death could not be established. "She was a very outspoken intern. According to the symptoms at the time of admission to the ETU, it could be an attempted suicide. The Consultant pathologist had already done the forensic medical examination, but nothing had come of it," Dr. Kumara said.
Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Gregory Cooray said that as the Badulla Magistrate had ordered the specimen of the body to be sent to the government analyst, the police could not establish the cause of death until the complete report of the government analyst was received. It will take another two to three days, he said.
In the meantime the police was also conducting its own investigations, SSP Cooray said.
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