Chhattisgarh Girl on Ventilator Support Dies as Cylinder Runs Out of Oxygen
Raipur: A five-year-old girl died on Monday after the cylinder attached to her ventilator support system ran out of oxygen while she was being shifted to another hospital 160 kms away in Chhattisgarh's Bastar division, an official said.
Bijapur Chief Medical and Health Officer Dr B R Pujari said the incident took place when Bulbul Kudiyam, who was diagnosed with severe pneumonia and was on ventilator support, was being shifted to Jagdalpur Medical College Hospital in Bastar district from Bijapur district hospital.
Kudiyam, a resident of Toynar village, had fallen ill at her ashram school in nearby Matwada village and was admitted in Bijapur district hospital on August 22, Dr Pujari told PTI.
He said that on Sunday night it was decided to shift her to Jagdalpur, around 160 kms from Bijapur, as her condition had turned critical.
Dr Pujari said the oxygen in the cylinder ran out by the time the ambulance reached Tokapal village in Bastar and Kudiyam was declared dead on arrival by doctors of the Jagdalpur Medical College Hospital.
"Generally it requires one oxygen cylinder to shift patients from Bijapur to Jagdalpur. We will investigate how it got exhausted so quickly," Dr Pujari said.
When asked if a medical technician was travelling in the ambulance, Dr Pujari said that the hospital's sole 108 ambulance with a technician was on duty somewhere else and so Kudiyam was shifted in an ambulance without one.
"If the driver had contacted Bijapur health officials in time, they would have arranged for an oxygen cylinder from nearby ambulance services," he said.
The ambulance driver had reportedly contacted staff at Tokapals local government hospital for a replacement oxygen cylinder but was allegedly refused, Chamru Kudiyam, the child's father, said.
The girl's father alleged that negligence on the part of Bijapur district hospital led to his daughter's death.
"The oxygen exhausted in the cylinder when the ambulance was nearing Tokapal. The driver had tried to arrange for another cylinder from Tokapal hospital but staff there
refused. There was no technician in the ambulance either," Chamru told reporters. He also accused his child's ashram school authorities of not providing timely treatment to his daughter.
Bijapur Collector K D Kunjam said that he had directed the CMHO to probe the incident and submit a report.
He said that authorities at Matwada ashram school had also been asked to give an explanation about the treatment given to the child when she fell ill there.
courtesy : news18.com
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Maharashtra sets up state vaccination task force to strengthen immunisation programme
Mumbai (PTI): The Maharashtra government has set up a State Vaccination Task Force to strengthen the regular immunisation programme and review the progress of related campaigns, a health department official said on Monday.
The State Vaccination Task Force will comprise at least 29 members and will be headed by the administrative head of the health department, he informed.
The government has also constituted separate district-level and municipal vaccination task forces to improve implementation and address challenges at the grassroots level, he said.
Municipal task forces, chaired by respective civic commissioners, have been constituted in view of the vast urban population in Maharashtra and the role of civic bodies in implementing different health programmes.
The district-level task forces will function under the chairmanship of collectors.
"Complete immunisation of children at the appropriate age is an extremely simple, cost-effective and highly effective measure to reduce child mortality and the prevalence of diseases among kids. Immunisation is a powerful tool for reducing illness in children," maintained the official.
To ensure full vaccination of all children, the state government implements various campaigns from time to time as per the central government guidelines, he pointed out.
"Active participation and cooperation of other relevant government departments are essential (in making these campaigns successful)," according to the official.
The state-level body will review the regular immunisation programme, associated campaigns and vaccine-preventable diseases in detail. It will also conduct focused assessments of high-risk districts and municipal corporations, including vacancies at district, municipal and sub-district levels, availability of cold chain equipment, resource gaps and training requirements, he noted.
The state task force will review allocation and utilisation of funds for immunisation and ensure timely action by officers concerned based on reports from district and municipal task forces and state-level monitoring mechanisms, the official said.
It will also ensure active coordination and participation of other government departments in immunisation drives, while district and municipal task forces will carry out similar functions at their respective levels, the official added.
