Bengaluru: Good fortune and wise counsel certainly went hand in hand in saving the life of 29-year-old woman in Bengaluru. In one of the many hospital negligence cases in the city, a young woman would have been buried alive had it not been for a last minute second opinion, after leading doctors at a private hospital declared that she had only half an hour left.

Shahina Begum, a resident of Goripalya near Mysuru Road, was unconscious for hours and was rushed to a well-known private hospital last week. Doctors who examined her declared that her condition was critical and opined that she had a very short time left to live.

Her disheartened family began preparations for the funeral. Shahina was taken back home from the hospital to spend her last few minutes with the family. Speaking to Deccan Herald, her brother, Shaik Ateeq said, ““We asked the family members to have food. We had also put a shamiyana in front of our house. We had to perform a ritual of dressing her up with different clothes and that was also done”, and added that family members called the workers at the burial ground and it was decided that she would be buried after namaaz at 5 pm

It was at this stage that Dr Tanvir, the family doctor, arrived on the scene and turned it around. Shahina’s father Mohammed Baig, a shopkeeper said, “We had given up all hopes. That was when Dr Tanvir came. What followed was a miracle for us. He told us she could survive and that was all we wanted to hear.”

Speaking about her condition, Dr Tanvir, Intensivist, Shekar Hospitals, said she has almost recovered. “She was unconscious for a really long period. This happened because her sugar levels were extremely high. Shahina had a condition called Diabetic Ketoacidosis,” he explained.

Shahina was then shifted to Shekar Hospitals for treatment. Now, she is conscious and on a semi-solid diet, on the road to recovery. She is likely to be discharged this week, her father said.