MADURAI: Patients and staff at the Government Rajaji Hospital staff said the issue of stray dogs on the hospital premises is a perennial problem. In a recent incident, four healthcare workers were injured after a stray dog that took shelter on the hospital premises went on a biting spree in a bid to protect its puppies.
On August 30, in just a span of five hours, four healthcare workers, including two 108 ambulance drivers, a security personnel and a sweeper were bitten on their ankles after the dog began attacking passersby in a bid to protect its puppies from perceived danger. Following the incident, the dog and its puppies were captured and removed by the Madurai corporation authorities.
"Dogs freely roam through the wards, even entering them at night. It seemed scary at first but a couple of people who had been visiting the hospital told me that it was a common occurrence," said a 62-year-old resident of Thiruppalai, who was admitted to the hospital for a minor surgery last month.
An official at the GRH, on condition of anonymity, said, "It is impractical to prevent the entry of stray dogs as there are many blocks at the hospital, each of which has multiple entrances. Although security personnel man the entrances, all dogs cannot be stopped from entering the premises."
"Each of the hospital blocks has at least 15-20 stray dogs frequenting the building. It is extremely difficult to chase them off as the canines get adequate food supply inside the hospital. The leftovers fed by attendants of patients and from the hospital canteens attract them back, however far they are dropped by the corporation authorities," said a health inspector at the GRH.
Meanwhile, a health inspector at the Corporation said two vans (a van for each zone) were currently operational to capture stray dogs. Once captured, the stray dogs are sterilised and dropped back in areas like Shenoy Nagar, surrounding the hospital, he added. About once a week, the stray dogs are captured from GRH and released after sterilisation.
However, GRH authorities pooh-poohed these claims, stating there is no timely intervention from the Corporation. "In the incident that occurred last week, the Corporation staff did not pick up the animal even after multiple complaints were raised months prior to the mother dog giving birth," said a senior official at GRH.