The Tarragona man was pronounced dead by a doctor in his home
A Tarragona coroner received the shock of his career last weekend when he discovered a patient, who had previously been pronounced dead, was actually still very much alive.
The Servei d’Emergències Mèdiques (SEM) emergency response service was called to the home of a 64-year-old man on Saturday July 30 who was believed to be unconscious. Firefighters had to break down the front door of the Riudecanyes house as the patient, understood to have a history of alcoholism, was unresponsive.
Upon examining the man, the SEM doctor certified his death and did not perform any resuscitation manoeuvres.
A short time later the coroner arrived with the funeral directors and to their astonishment, it was discovered that the man was still breathing, albeit with considerable difficulty.
A medicalised ambulance fled to the scene and paramedics managed to stabilise the patient before transferring him to hospital.
Police sources have indicated that the officers who travelled to the man’s home informed the duty judge of the incident and opened informative proceedings, although the Mossos d’Esquadra (Barcelona Police force) will only initiate an investigation if a complaint is filed.
The same police sources have explained that it is up to the SEM to initiate an internal investigation into the circumstances in which the incident occurred.
Image: SEM
Source: Murcia Today
