Category: BIHAR BED

Eight ALS ambulances deployed to transport AES patients in Bihar: Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan

Source: zeenews.india.com

Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan on Thursday said that eight additional Advanced Life Support (ALS) ambulances have been deployed to transport Acute Encephalitis Syndrome (AES) patients in the affected districts of Bihar. He added that the government officials have also started house-to-house active case finding campaign in order to check the outbreak of deadly viral disease. “8 additional Advanced Life Support (ALS) ambulances deployed to transport AES (Acute Encephalitis Syndrome)/JE (Japanese Encephalitis) patients in the affected districts. House to house active case finding campaign started,” Harsh Vardhan was quoted as saying by ANI.

It is to be noted that the AES has claimed the lives of over 140 children in Bihar, with over 100 children losing their lives at Sri Krishna Medical College & Hospital (SKMCH) in Muzaffarpur alone. The Union Health Minister said that a team of experts from Indian Council of Medical Research has been deployed at SKMCH hospital in order to make the virology lab operational as soon as possible. Harsh Vardhan noted that multi-disciplinary team deployed earlier in Muzaffarpur is reviewing all the case records of AES patients, who were admitted and treated since the outbreak of deadly disease this year.

“ICMR team of experts has been deployed at SKMCH hospital, Muzaffarpur for making the virology lab operational at the earliest. Multi-disciplinary team deployed earlier is reviewing all the case records of AES patients, admitted and treated in 2019,” said Harsh Vardhan.

It may be recalled that Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Tuesday visited SKMCH and gave directions to convert the government-run hospital into a 2500-bed facility. Kumar also issued orders saying 1500 new beds for the hospital should be arranged immediately and a ‘dharmshala’ should be build for the relatives and families of the those who are admitted in SKMCH.

Earlier on Thursday, RJD leader Misa Bharti said that no leader from her party will attend the dinner called by Prime Minister today because of deaths of children in Muzaffarpur due to AES. Misa said that medicines and equipment can be bought from the money which the government is going to spent in organising this dinner for parliamentarians.

Encephalitis is a viral disease, which causes mild flu-like symptoms such as high fever, convulsions and headaches and has been claiming lives in the district for the past few weeks.

100 Kids Have Died Due To Encephalitis In Bihar, Govt Seems Clueless About How To Save Them

Source: indiatimes.com

The death toll due to the Acute Encephalitis Syndrome outbreak in Bihar has reached 100 and despite claims made by state government, the number of deaths are increasing with more and more infected children rushing to the hospitals.

Muzzafurpur district is mainly affected by the outbreak and 83 children have succumbed to Encephalitis at Sri Krishna Medical College while 17 died at Kejriwal hospital. The union health minister Harsh Vardhan visited the Muzaffarpur yesterday  and took stock of the situation. Different media reports said that the minister was shown black flags. However, the minister said he has spoken to  “every concerned individual about this issue”.

The situation turned grim when a five year od child while three minsiters around and this enraged the anger of the parents of the children and they confronted the ministers. Vardhan, however, later held a meeting and assured a research that would be undertaken to ascertain the cause of the disease to order any such outbreak in future. He was quoted News18. 

“I assure the people of the area, especially the affected families, that the government will extend all possible help and measures to the state government,” Vardhan said.

Despite all problems and considering the seriousness of this disease, I appreciate the efforts put in by the doctors to ensure efficient treatment to everyone,” he added.

Nitish Kumar, the CM had also expressed grief over the deaths of the children and announced “an ex gratia payment of Rs. 4 lakh to the next of the kin of those who have died”. The lack of awareness about his to tackle the decease is also the reason for outbreak, the CM said.

The health department of the state has cited hypoglycaemia in which the blood sugar level go down as the main reason behind the deaths of the children. Acute Encephalitis Syndrome is a viral diseases that has symptoms like high fever, convulsions and headaches.

In Bihar, doctors treat patients on floor as hospital tries to cope with rush

Source:hindustantimes.com

So chock-a-block are the wards at Muzaffarpur’s Sri Krishna Medical College Hospital with patients suffering from Acute Encephalitis Syndrome (AES) that doctors are being forced to treat children on the floor.

At least 43 of the 50 deaths due to AES in Bihar have taken place at this hospital, with Muzaffarpur being the epicentre of the outbreak. Ten other districts have also been affected.

Sri Krishna hospital medical superintendent Sunil Kumar Shahi said, “We have an in-patient bed strength of only 610 whereas the number of patients admitted to our hospital is around 876. We do not refuse any patient, so we put mattresses to treat them on the floor.”

To cope with the rush of patients, the superintendent has converted all 20 beds of the intensive care unit (ICU) into paediatric intensive care units (PICU).

“If we come across patients, who need to be admitted to ICU, we will admit them in the coronary care unit (CCU). Against 14 existing beds at our PICU, I have converted all our 20 ICU beds into PICU, taking the number of beds in PICU up to 34,” Shahi said.

“Given the disease burden, even the central team which is here has suggested increasing the number of PICU beds to 100,” he added.

The government has ensured the availability of all drugs free of cost to AES patients. Sri Krishna hospital is also providing food to patients as well as their attendants. “Though we are not supposed to provide food to patients in PICU, on the advice of health minister Mangal Pandey and principal secretary, health, Sanjay Kumar, I am supplying milk, supplements, fruit, bread and eggs to all AES patients and their attendants on humanitarian grounds,” said Shahi.

The parents of some children being treated at the hospital are satisfied with the facilities provided. Some of them, including Md Aslam Madan Sahni, Ram Bharos Thakur and Gayatri Devi, are hoping the hospital will start supplying diapers free of cost too.