NEW DELHI: Hospitals run by the Delhi government continue to face a crisis over anti-rabies vaccination owing to a shortage of supply from the vaccine manufacturers and poor quality of vaccines.
Authorities at Lal Bahadur Shastri Hospital, which has placed a notice inside its premises announcing non-availability of the vaccine, stated that the problem had been persisting for more than a year.
“Everybody, including the state health department, has been apprised of the issue, but they are helpless because CPA had called for a tender but that didn’t materialise. The samples which were coming were declared unfit or standard quality vaccine was poor. It is a manufacturing problem,” said Amita Saxena, medical superintendent of the hospital.
“All hospitals under Delhi government are facing this issue because the manufacturing has stopped. We procure the vaccines on and off, but the demand is greater than the supply. So however much we procure from the market, it gets finished. Earlier, above 400 patients were visiting, but now, since the message has gone out, the numbers are less, around 200 per day,” Saxena added.
A senior doctor at GTB Hospital, who did not wish to be named, said RML and Safdarjung have been able to procure the vaccine through some other state government’s contract, which is an avenue not available with the Delhi government.
“We are procuring vaccines from local authorised suppliers, dealer or local purchase. In case we don’t have it, we advise the patient to get it from local medical stores or private clinics. If vaccines are not available, the doctors are helpless,” said Dr DK Sharma medical superintendent at AIIMS.