BHOPAL: A six-month-old died due to the unavailability of an ambulance in the Datia district of Madhya Pradesh on Thursday.
A child dying in the lap of a helpless mother, reportedly amid the delayed arrival of an ambulance at a community health centre in Datia district has exposed the condition of public health services in the state.
The 108 ambulance arrived at the concerned CHC three hours after it was requested. Two other ambulances, funded by MLA's Local Area Development Fund, parked at the same CHC were unavailable, as the child’s mother couldn’t afford the fuel.
The shocking incident happened at the Indergarh community health centre (CHC) which comes under the Sewda Assembly constituency, presently represented in the Vidhan Sabha by Congress’s Kunwar Ghanshyam Singh.
According to reports, a scheduled caste woman Renu Jatav, a native of Baderi village, rushed her severely ill six-month-old child to the Indergarh CHC at around 11 am on Thursday. With the child suffering from acute pneumonic symptoms, the on-duty doctor referred the child to the Datia District Hospital after preliminary treatment.
Renu requested the on-duty doctor to arrange an ambulance for rushing her child to the district hospital, after which the doctor rang for the 108 ambulance.
Renu Jatav blamed inadequate treatment at the CHC and delay in an ambulance for her child’s death.
Taking cognizance of the matter, a team headed by SDM, the district’s chief medical and health officer (CMHO), the local police station in charge and the tehsildar was sent by Datia district collector to the Indergarh CHC on Friday to investigate the entire incident.
The team recorded statements of Anganwadi and ASHA workers, hospital staff, duty doctor and ambulance driver.
Based on the recorded statements of all stakeholders, the enquiry team will fix responsibility for the alleged negligence. “Whoever is found responsible for the alleged negligence will face strict action,” an official forming part of the team said on Friday.
“The probe is incomplete, as the statements of the woman, whose child died, are yet to be recorded,” the Datia district CMHO Dr RB Kurele said.
When queried about the delay in the ambulance, Dr Kurele said, "There is a clear-cut government protocol to ensure the immediate availability of 108 ambulances based on the severity of the patient. The other ambulances are operated by the Patient Welfare Committee on a no profit no loss basis. But in case of emergencies or serious patients, such ambulances too must be provided free of cost."