In an act of massive negligence in Maharashtra, sanitiser was administered to as many as 12 children instead of polio drops at a medical facility.
A shocking incident of negligence came to light from Yavatmal district of Maharashtra where sanitiser was administered to 12 children instead of polio drops. The children, who were aged between 1 and 5, were admitted to the Government Medical College and Hospital (GMCH) in Yavatmal for treatment.
The children were kept under observation for around 48 hours and are fortunately said to be in a stable condition, said Yavatmal District Health Officer Hari Pawar.
As per Krishna Panchal, Chief Executive Officer of Yavatmal Zilla Parishad, two drops of sanitiser were administered to the children at Kapsi sub-centre of Bhambora public health centre (PHC) in Ghatanji tehsil.
Staffers called parents back to facility
Three employees, community health officer, ASHA worker and Anganwadi sevika, realised that the polio drops were swapped with sanitiser, at around 2 pm on the same day. After that, the staffers called the parents to the facility and administered the polio drops to the children.
Meanwhile, the information reached the local sarpanch and he complained about the blunder to higher authorities. Panchal said, “Only one child was vomiting. But even polio drops can cause that. But that’s not the issue. It’s about the staff’s negligence. We have started an inquiry and action will be taken against them.”
Panchal slammed the officials for the lapse and said that it should not have happened as polio drops are stored in labelled bottles that have a vaccine viral monitor which is of a particular colour, indicating that the proper temperature for storage is being maintained.
He said that efforts are being made to check if the three staff members were properly trained in administering the polio dose.
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