Meghalaya: Health Minister yet to receive report on child wrongly declared dead due to COVID
Health Minister A.L. Hek, on Monday, informed that he is yet to receive a report on the alleged goof-up of the health department that had wrongly declared the death of an 18 years old boy from COVID-19.
By Daiaphira Kharsati
SHILLONG:
Health Minister A.L. Hek, on Monday, informed that he is yet to receive a report on the alleged goof-up of the health department that had wrongly declared the death of an 18 years old boy from COVID-19.
It may be mentioned that Sanborlang Dohtdong’s name appeared in the list of deceased COVID patients on Friday, although he was still alive. He expired on Sunday.
Speaking to The North East Today (TNT) on Monday, Joint Director (SS) of Shillong Civil Hospital, Andreas Dkhar said the patient was admitted to the COVID ward. However clinically, it was suspected that the disease he was suffering from was something else, and that it was beyond COVID-19, and subsequently, a test for Japanese Encephalitis (JE) was done.
The test report found that besides COVID-19, he had JE disease which is spread through mosquitoes. Thereafter, he sent an alert on JE to the state Nodal officer of the Integrated Disease Surveillance Programme (IDSP) to alert Ri Bhoi.
Dkhar informed that there is currently a single JE patient (who is non-COVID) being treated at the hospital.
Referring that there was a miscommunication between the Hospital and the team that monitors the COVID portal, he said, “I don’t know how they uploaded it there. We have to be careful about this.”
Dkhar informed that the family members visited the Hospital on Sunday at around 1 pm and the boy expired on Sunday.
Stating that they are from a poor family and felt sorry for the family, he said that the boy was very serious.
Speaking about the infections during Monsoon and post-monsoon season, he said that the people have to take precautions not only against COVID, but other infectious diseases as well such as Japanese Encephalitis, Scrub-Typhus, Malaria and Dengue, particularly people in Ri Bhoi and Garo Hills districts.
“We are trying to streamline things so that everything is in order, but sometimes when there is heavy rush, it becomes crammed. Whatever manpower we have, we utilise them but we also need space, just increasing manpower will not suffice unless we have a space to work. That is why the government is opening up other new hospitals to deal with COVID. The government is also doing its best to improve the health infrastructure,” he said.
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