Taking suo motu cognisance of the death of a newborn for want of a ventilator in Hisar, the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has issued notices to the state Chief Secretary, asking for a detailed report within two weeks.
The newborn died as he could not get ventilator support for nearly 24 hours in the hospitals of Hisar and Rohtak. The father went from one hospital to another, but could not get a ventilator, resulting in the infant’s death, the NHRC said in its report.
The commission observed that the contents of the news reports, if true, raise serious issues of violation of rights. According to a report on July 3, the baby was born through a caesarean section at the Civil Hospital in Hisar on July 1 and required immediate ventilator support. While his mother remained admitted at the Civil Hospital, doctors initially referred the newborn to the Medical College at Agroha in Hisar district. However, after the Civil Hospital reportedly confirmed that no ventilator was available even at Agroha, the baby was referred to the PGIMS in Rohtak. Unable to get a ventilator at the PGIMS also, the baby was brought back to Hisar and taken to a private hospital, where he was declared dead.
The matter was also referred to the district medical negligence board, which has initiated an inquiry.
Health department sources said “communication gap” resulted in the death. A ventilator was available at the Rohtak Civil Hospital, but the baby was admitted to the PGIMS. The availability of ventilator was also not checked at the civil hospitals in the adjoining districts of Fatehabad, Sirsa and Jind.
