Belgian father donates son’s body to govt hospital dept

David Boom, an elderly man from Belgium left Aurangabad with a heavy heart after donating the body of his 42-year-old son Van Boom to the government medical college hospital’s (GMCH) anatomy department on Monday. Van died of plasmodium falciparum malaria on Sunday.

Van had come on a tour to India from Belgium in the second week of December 2008. After visiting Mumbai, he had hired a private taxi on his return to Delhi. But Van was taken ill midway near Dhule. He left the taxi and rested in a makeshift accommodation.

Subsequently, he became unconscious. Dhule police was informed, who then admitted him to the civil hospital where he was kept for more than a week. When he did not respond to the treatment, doctors advised the police to admit him to the GMCH at Aurangabad.

On the instruction of GMCH dean, Nandkumar Dravid, a team of four doctors treated him. They found that Van was suffering from plasmodium falciparum malaria. This malaria paralyses the human body within a few days.

Meanwhile, GMCH authorities informed the Belgian embassy in New Delhi about Van. They also contacted his father David Boom, who came to Aurangabad on Saturday. But Van breathed his last on Sunday.

David Boom expressed his desire to donate the body of his son. Following this, officials from the Belgian embassy came to Aurangabad from Delhi on Monday. After completion of legal formalities, Van’s body was handed over to the anatomy department of the hospital.