KRISHNAGIRI: Health workers, with help from police, convinced a 25-year-old woman from Gummalapuram, a tribal village in Thalli, to get admitted in hospital for the delivery of her fifth child.
The woman delivered a healthy girl baby in Hosur GH on June 11.
Sources said, the woman Mala (name changed) of Belakarai has four babies, all of whom were delivered at her home itself. When she became pregnant again, health department staff from Thalli and Kelamangalam got in touch with her and convinced her to get admitted in hospital.
Medical Officer in Thalli block C Nirmala told TNIE, “Delivery at home is not safe for baby and mother, it will lead to postpartum haemorrhage, sepsis, hypothermia and other complications. Apart from this, hygiene is important during delivery, which may not be possible at home.”
She added, “It was difficult for us to convince the family, because her husband abused health workers during their visits. Health team of Gumlapuram PHC registered her name last year and monitored her till her date of expected delivery, which was June 7.
In the third week of May, and from June 1 and 6, staff including village health nurse, sector health nurse, community health nurse, block medical officer and local tribal leader visited Belakarai to admit her at a government hospital. But her husband did not allow us to admit in hospital. Further, she went missing from the village and we came to know about it on June 8. We alerted the Kelamangalam health team. On June 10, she was traced to her native.
Kottayurkollai in Bettamugilalam.”
Village health nurse of Bettamugilalam, S Sathya said, “Though she traced Mala, her relatives refused to send her to hospital and scolded the medical team. Through the BMO, Denkanikottai police was informed and with their help, she was taken to Unichetti PHC the same day and shifted to Hosur GH the next day. She delivered a healthy baby and underwent postpartum sterilisation and was discharged on June 22.”
Sources said village health nurse from Thalli is regularly checking on Mala, who is in Kottayurkollai.
Krishnagiri deputy director of health services G Ramesh Kumar told TNIE that three home deliveries were reported in the district so far this year. “The trend has come down thanks to the continuous effort of health department,” he added.
No. of deliveries at home in Krishnagiri
2018- 2019 68
2019- 2020 62
2020- 2021 58
2021- 2022 49
2021- 2022 20
Block wise deliveries at home
Kelamangalam 22 (2018 - 2019
Kelamangalam 29 (2019- 2020)
Shoolagiri and Kelamangalam 12 (2020- 21)
Thalli 21 (2021- 22)
Shoolagiri 7 (2022- 23)