'GMC
neglected SARS victim'
Sandesh Prabhudesai
18 April 2003
Total negligent attitude of the Goa Medical College hospital
in treating India's first SARS patient has come to light,
with the victim's family doctor telling altogether a different
story.
According to Dr Pradip Pai Dhungat, a private medical practitioner,
the young marine engineer had many other symptoms than fever,
due to which he was immediately referred to the GMC for treatment
in isolation.
The GMC authorities however did not even bother to personally
monitor his admission, but the patient was sent searching
for the isolation ward and then discharged after three days,
while his report was awaited from the laboratory in Pune.
Admitting that the victim as well as his father have complained
to him in this regard, chief minister Manohar Parrikar has
assured to probe into the matter.
Contrary to the official contention that the young marine
engineer only once had fever of 100 degree F, Dr Dhungat said
his fever was running between 99 to 102 with mild chill for
four days and even the antibiotics like Clarithromycin were
not responding.
The victim had a mild soar throat, severe back ache, blood
test indicating lower side of Lymphocyte counts unlike other
viruses, marginal rise in SGPT and even the X-ray was showing
doubtful shadow of pnumotharax.
Being familiar with his respiratory infections even before
he joined the ship, Dr Dhungat wonders how the GMC authorities
could discharge him in three days, in spite of sending the
patient with a detailed report and an elaborate questioner,
regarding isolation, viral studies and community measures.
"The whole purpose of the isolation ward was defeated
the way the GMC authorities handled the case in a most negligent
manner", stated angry Dr Dhungat.
The victim was neither personally taken to the isolation
ward by the nodal officer Dr Rajan Kunkolienkar nor Dr N G
Dubhashi of the Medicine department but was told to search
for the ward and get himself admitted. He even went out to
the canteen once, getting fed up of impatiently waiting alone
in the ward for four long hours for the doctors to check him
up.
Even while discharging, states his concerned family doctor,
he was not instructed to use mask or not to mix with the people.
In fact, the victim came to know about the confirmation of
being tested positive after midnight since he was in other
town, attending a birthday party with his wife.
Though Dr Dhungat also believes that the victim is now completely
out of danger and his family members are also not infected
with the deadly SARS virus, he simply cannot understand how
the authorities could be so careless and casual.
He also does not believe that the reports of blood, serum,
throat swab and urine could all be wrong at one time. "The
responsible institute in Pune would definitely test the samples
twice or thrice before arriving at a conclusion in case of
such a serious matter", he opines.
Like health minister Dr Suresh Amonkar, he also does not
rule out the possibility of in-born immunity the victim may
be having for the corona virus or it could be a different
kind of corona virus.
The chief minister however asserts that the GMC hospital
has not acted negligently but in a very responsible manner.
"I am not prepared to blame the whole institution because
of lapse on the part of one or two officials", he states.
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