BHOPAL: Rehana, a newborn who was bitten by rats at the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit of a government-run hospital in Indore, died on Wednesday due to suspected septicemia.
She is the second newborn to have died following the rat bite at the hospital in the last 24 hours.
One baby suffered bites to her head and shoulder while the second baby, Rehana, had injuries to her fingers.
However, the hospital insisted that the infants did not die due to rat bites.
Hospital superintendent Dr Ashok Yadav said both infants were already in a critical condition. “The first baby had multiple congenital disorders, was severely underweight and had a haemoglobin level of just 5 mg. She was already on life support. She died of septicemia,” he said.
Rehana also suffered from many congenital diseases and had undergone stomach surgery and died due to infection, he added.
Rehana’s parents who live in Dewas have told the authorities that they did not want an autopsy and left for home with her body. She weighed only 1.6kg, the hospital’s deputy superintendent Dr Jitendra Verma said, according to PTI.
Verma said the girl was operated upon seven days ago, but her condition was critical due to septicemia.
{{/usCountry}}Verma said the girl was operated upon seven days ago, but her condition was critical due to septicemia.
{{/usCountry}}The postmortem report of the first baby to have died is awaited. Her parents had abandoned her in Khargone district.
The Madhya Pradesh State Human Rights Commission has asked the hospital superintendent to investigate the incident and submit a report.
Opposition leaders have stepped up their attack on the MP government and demanded that deputy chief minister Rajendra Shukla, who holds the health portfolio, steps down.
“The health minister should have resigned after this incident. It’s not only the nursing staff and a few doctors but the entire system is responsible for the death of two infants,” said MP Congress spokesperson KK Mishra said.
Mishra added that a first information report (FIR) should be registered against the company contracted to carry out pest control activities at the hospital.