Even as the nation celebrates Vinayak Chaturthi, Delhi continues to reels under dengue fever.

Hospitals continue to stay jam packed with patients and their relatives, the latest victim being a 3 year old girl child. The dengue death count in Delhi has now touched 15 even as patients are sharing beds, sometimes even 4 to a bed! There isn’t any more space in the hospitals – hallways are overflowing, OTs have been converted into wards to allow care for more patients and doctors are working around the clock!

With the matter getting worse, the central and state governments are pushing private hospitals to pitch in without over charging patients, a strongly worded statement by the Delhi government has warned hospitals from overcharing for dengue tests as well.


Latest Developments

1. Concerned over the alarming rise in cases, the Delhi High Court today asked the Centre, the state government and civic bodies to explain the steps being taken to check the crisis.

2. Almost all government-run hospitals are struggling to cope with the crush of patients, with limited beds to offer. Images of three or four patients sharing one bed have been shown on TV channels.

3. The Delhi government has asked private hospitals to buy more beds and hire more doctors, nurses and paramedics. State-run hospitals have been ordered to increase beds by 1,000 by Sunday.

4. Private hospitals have also been asked not to charge more than Rs. 600 for the dengue test, which is offered free of charge in government facilities.

5. After the death of two young boys last week after they were allegedly denied treatment, the government has warned private hospitals that they could lose their licence for turning patients away. Delhi Health Minister Satyendar Jain said even if they don’t have beds, hospitals must treat and stabilise the patients.

6. Last week, Avinash Rout, 7, and Aman Sharma, 6, died of dengue after allegedly being denied treatment by private hospitals. Avinash’s parents committed suicide following his death, which provoked an outcry.

7. The Indian Medical Association has said that the current virus type is “less fatal” compared to the one in 2013 and has appealed to people not to panic or demand hospital admission unless it is urgent. “There is no need of platelets transfusion unless a patient has active bleed and count of less than 10,000,” said the association’s Secretary General KK Aggarwal.

8. Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal had said his government is exploring a law to facilitate temporary takeover of private hospitals during emergencies.

9. The government had also announced that its anti-corruption helpline 1031 would double up as a dengue helpline.

10. All schools in Delhi have been asked to ensure that children are dressed in full sleeve shirts, trousers and salwar kameez for the next one month.

Dengue Tests & Beds
There are three tests for dengue — NS1 antigen test, dengue antibody test and the platelet count test. The government has fixed a cap of Rs 600 each for the first two tests and Rs 50 for the platelet count test, the minister said. The state government has also instructed private hospitals to increase their bed count by 10-20 percent within a week.

“If the private hospitals successfully increase the number of beds, there will be an average increase of at least 3,000 beds for patients in the capital. These will be used only for fever and dengue patients and no private hospital should turn away patients,” says Satyendar Jain,Delhi’s Health Minister.

Medicos Overwhelmed: 600 Blood Samples a day!
According to NDTV reports doctors are working hard to diagnose, prioritize and treat only the severe cases. With this dengue outbreak being more about fear in the mind of the public doctors across Delhi hospitals are repeatedly requesting relatives to take care of minor fever at home rather than bringing them immediately to the hospital. This would allow them to focus on the critical cases and preventing further deaths. The nursing staff and lab workers are working around the clock and openly state that they are processing close to 600 blood samples in a single day! Medicos and the nursing professionals are now, also asking patients to stay adequately hydrated and tell the media that – hygeine in public spaces, stagnant water at homes and waste management would be the right first steps towards preventon. Following this, people should wear full sleeves and trousers to prevent getting bit by mosquitos too.

Unknown Medicines, desperate families

Humein nahin pata…yeh dawa dee gayi thi…hamne khareed li..” (I don’t know..I was given this medicine, and I bought it) says a desperate relative who speaks with the doctor. When asked by the doctor and the NDTV reporter where he got it, the man states a man was selling these pills outside the premises of the hospital and sounded very official. The unknowing patient’s relative bought the suspect pill out of sheer desperation to treat his loved one. Doctors and the Delhi government’s spokesperson are now warning against opportunistic touts who, seeing this confusion and desperation are out to make a quick buck. Doctors are firmly warning patients to only buy medicines from the hospital’s pharmacy or a pharmacy outside, not something been losely sold by someone who claims to be working for the hospital.

Another man’s story is even more heartbreaking, a day labourer; his daily wages are Rs. 600/- per day. He hasn’t gone to work for the last 3 days even as his 13 year old son has high fever. The concerned father suspects dengue and hasn’t left the side of his teenage son’s bed, yet hasn’t been able to earn any money over the last 3 days.

Even as the dengue crisis in DElhi worsens, social media sites like Twitter has tweets blaming the Delhi government for not doing enough.

While the media is holding hospitals accountable for treating patients while maintaining affordable costs, no one seems to care that doctors are now pulling back to back 16 hour shifts while having to make sure they don’t get sick themselves. Even as the crowds grow, tempers are bound to flare among desperate relatives of patients. Will the doctor be spared or attacked? And, the question as always still remains – where is the protection for them even as they selflessly work to heal the nation’s capital.

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Original Article – NDTV, Medical Dialogues, India Medical Times
Image Credits – NDTV

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