scorecardresearch
Wednesday, March 27, 2024
Support Our Journalism
HomeIndiaGovernanceYogi government likely to train 'quacks' to check encephalitis deaths

Yogi government likely to train ‘quacks’ to check encephalitis deaths

Follow Us :
Text Size:

Steps will be taken to ensure adequate human resources and improved diagnostic facilities at primary health centres

As it battles yet another round of child fatalities in Gorakhpur — over 40 children died due to encephalitis in the past 72 hours — the Uttar Pradesh government is now preparing to work on a strong set of prescriptions recommended by the Centre.

The Yogi Adityanath government could soon involve ‘quacks’ or informal health advisers, who are the first point of contact for most patients in the eastern UP. In the absence of a robust primary healthcare system, this is a part of larger strategy to check encephalitis deaths.

Director general of the Indian Council of Medical Research, Dr Soumya Swaminathan, confirmed to ThePrint that the Yogi government had indicated its readiness to take a range of steps to check the spread of AES.

“A key component is to get the quacks or informal health advisors involved since they are first point of contact for many parents. The idea is to train them so that at least they can refer the patients elsewhere in time,” Swaminathan said.

“It is also important that they know what drug should they use and when to use. Another aspect is ensuring community awareness about the causes behind encephalitis and ways to prevent it,” she said.

This informal segment, incidentally, was also involved closely in the government’s fight against the spread of polio. The Centre feels that bringing the network of these informal doctors into the fold again may help in early diagnosis of acute encephalitis syndrome (AES) and help prevent deaths.

A high-level meeting was held in Lucknow recently where the Gorakhpur deaths and recurrent instances of encephalitis were discussed threadbare.

“We have come up with a number of recommendations and the UP government is taking it very seriously this time. They have stated that they want to set right all these systemic issues. First thing is putting human resources in place. The primary healthcare system needs to be staffed as much as the medical colleges,” Swaminanthan said.

“All vacancies — running into thousands — need to be filled. Training comes next. And the third point is to ensure basic diagnostic facilities and protocol for treating basic infections. In the BRD Medical College, microbiology department needs to be strengthened. This needs to be done on priority,” she added.

With the BJP in power both at the state and the Centre, the Gorakhpur tragedy in which nearly 70 children died three weeks ago, is being closely monitored by the Prime Minister’s Office and the health ministry.

The ICMR is also considering introducing a new drug, minocycline, to treat AES and talks have begun with pharmaceutical companies to ready a paediatric formulation of the drug.

“There are some studies that need to be done. It may have slight advantages. Some small trials were out carried out, but they did not show any major changes. However, given the fact that children are dying and we have to do everything possible, so it’s been suggested again that we use this drug to treat AES cases,” the head of ICMR said.

Swaminathan also indicated that attributing the recent Gorakhpur deaths to a disruption in the suppply of oxygen may not be entirely accurate as a combination of factors leads to deaths among newborns. She also explained that a large number of “social determinants of health” were important in AES cases.

Lack of sanitation, proximity to scrub areas and closer interaction with animals, contaminated water, vectors like mosquitoes are leading to a spectrum of diseases which fall under the umbrella of AES.

While 40 per cent of the AES cases are attributed to scrub typhus, dengue, malaria and Japanese Encephalitis, over 60 per cent of pathogens are still unknown, even as considerable research is on to decode it.

Subscribe to our channels on YouTube, Telegram & WhatsApp

Support Our Journalism

India needs fair, non-hyphenated and questioning journalism, packed with on-ground reporting. ThePrint – with exceptional reporters, columnists and editors – is doing just that.

Sustaining this needs support from wonderful readers like you.

Whether you live in India or overseas, you can take a paid subscription by clicking here.

Support Our Journalism

LEAVE A REPLY

Please enter your comment!
Please enter your name here

Most Popular