Bihar puts in place measures to quickly ferry kids with AES for treatment

Two children have died of acute encephalitis syndrome while 14 such cases have been reported this year

PATNA: The Bihar government has extended an arrangement of linking an auto-rickshaw each with every panchayat to expeditiously ferry children suffering from acute encephalitis syndrome (AES) to the nearest health facility across 12 districts, officials said on Monday.

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Two children have died of AES while 14 such cases have been reported this year.

“We will pay the affected family between ₹400 and ₹1,000, depending on the distance, as transportation cost to ferry children suffering from AES to the nearest health facility. We have also linked an auto-rickshaw for this purpose with every panchayat and mapped it with the nearest PHC [Public Health Centre],” said additional director (health) Vinay Kumar Sharma.

He added mobile numbers of auto-rickshaw drivers will be available with the accredited social health activists. Sharma said an ambulance has also been attached with every PHC to transport patients. He said they want to cut down the time lag in transporting AES-affected children as delays in treatment can cause irreparable brain damage.

AES cases have been going up with a rise in temperatures and humidity, which are considered conducive to the outbreak of the disease. It causes fever, disorientation, seizures, etc.

A five-year-old boy from Vaishali died of AES in Muzaffarpur on April 13. Earlier, a three-year-old child from Sitamarhi died of AES on January 11.

The state government has been training doctors, nurses, and auxiliary nursing midwives across all levels for managing AES.