Pakistan's heaviest man Noorul Hassan dies after left unattended in ICU due to commotion

Noorul Hassan, Pakistan's heaviest man who weighed over 330 kg and recently underwent a successful liposuction surgery, died in Lahore on Monday after he was left unattended due to a commotion in the intensive care unit (ICU) of a hospital, according to a media report. Hassan, 55, a resident of Sadiqabad, some 400 kms from Lahore, underwent the weight reduction surgery on June 28 after he was airlifted on a Pakistan Army helicopter to Lahore for treatment on the special directives from Army Chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa, the Dawn news reported.

After the surgery, he was shifted to the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) to be kept under observation. On Monday, Hassan and a second patient died after they were left unattended following a chaos by the attendants of a female patient who passed away at the Shalamar Hospital earlier during the day, the report said. 

"In the chaos that ensued, Noor and a second patient died due to the unavailability of staff," Dr Maazul Hassan was quoted as saying in the report. 

He added that the relatives of the female patient did not intend to cause the deaths but the situation worsened due to the violence.

Maazul said that while the chaos was taking place, Noorul was feeling unwell and was left unattended for nearly an hour.

"When they (hospital staff) noted this, they attempted to resuscitate him but were unable to successfully to do so," he added.

Hospital staff said that relatives of the female patient had broken windows, switched ventilators off and attacked the doctors. 

They added that nurses left the ICU during the commotion. A spokesperson for the hospital said that they were investigating the incident and needed to look at the CCTV footage. 

"Everyone was trying to save themselves during the chaos in the hospital," the spokesperson said.  

Prior to Hassan's weight reduction surgery, Pakistan Army chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa made special arrangements for his transfer and treatment.  Personnel from the Rescue 1122 had to break the wall of his house to take him outside as he was too big to pass through the main gate of his house.

According to media reports, Hassan was the heaviest man in Pakistan, but there is no official confirmation about this.

Earlier in 2017, Pakistan's most obese person with a weight of 360 kg underwent a laparoscopic surgery and succeeded to bring his weight below 200 kg.

According to a survey report released by the Pakistan Endocrine Society last year, 29 per cent of the Pakistani population is overweight, out of which 51 per cent are categorised in the obesity class.