Nanded Hospital Dean Bactracks On Statement, Denies Medical Negligence As Cause Of Deaths

The dean of Nanded Hospital in Maharashtra, Dr. Shyamrao Wakode has now backtracked on his earlier statement today to say that there was no shortage of doctors or medicines in the hospital as per a report in the HT. This is related to an ongoing crisis of over 30 deaths in 48 hours in Nanded Hospital.

Clarifying himself the dean said, "From 12'O clock on 30th September till 12'O clock on 1st October, there had been 24 deaths of which 12 deaths are of infants who were just 1 or 2 days old and were premature babies. Such premature babies have difficulty in breathing etc. since their organs are not fully developed. It is those deaths".

The dean further added "Among the adults, there were 8 patients between 70 and 80 years of age. They had different problems, like diabetes, liver failure, and kidney failure. Patients usually come here in serious condition,"..." There was no shortage of medicines or doctors. Proper care was provided to the patients, but their bodies did not respond to the treatment, which caused deaths,"

However, this is different from what the hospital dean had said earlier. He claimed that staff transfers and their inability to procure medicines from Haffkine Institute caused 24 deaths which were due to various ailments like snake bites, arsenic, and phosphorous poisoning.

As per media reports, Dr. Wakode had said, "Around 12 children died in the last 24 hours...12 adults also died due to various ailments (snake bites, arsenic and phosphorus poisoning, etc.). Due to transfers of various staff, there was some difficulty for us...We were supposed to buy medicines from the Haffkine Institute but that also didn't happen....Also, patients come from far off to this hospital and there were many patients whose sanctioned budget also got disturbed...,"

WHAT THE CASE IS: In just 48 hours, a staggering toll of over 30 lives has been tragically lost within the premises of a government hospital situated in Nanded, Maharashtra. As per the most recent media reports, an additional seven individuals, among them four young children, succumbed to their ailments late into the night of 2nd October at the Shankarrao Chavan Government Hospital. This development brings the total number of fatalities within the Nanded hospital to a devastating 31. Remarkably, of these 31 patients, 16 were infants or young children.

WHAT ARE THE OPPOSITIONS CLAIMS: Lashing out at the healthcare system provided by the state government Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge took to his social media handle X and wrote, "Our deepest condolences to the families of the victims. Such incidents taking place repeatedly have raised a question mark on the health system of the state government...We demand a thorough investigation so that the culprits of this negligence are given strict punishment by the judiciary,"

Congress MP Rahul Gandhi also took a shot at the BJP by asking why there was no money for medicines for children when the BJP spends crores on publicity. The Wayanad MP wrote on his social media handle X, "The news of the death of 24 people, including 12 newborns, due to shortage of medicines in the government hospital of Nanded, Maharashtra is extremely sad. I express my deepest condolences to all the bereaved families. The BJP government spends thousands of crores of rupees on its publicity, but there is no money for medicines for children. In the eyes of the BJP, the lives of the poor have no value."