Govt Hospital In Bihar's Magadh Turns Deathbed For Children As 848 Died During Treatment Within 10 Months

The largest government hospital of Bihar's Magadh division, Anugrah Narayan Magadh College and Hospital, witnessed 848 deaths of children between January and October, this year. The death toll among the 5,314 children admitted for treatment was about 15 per cent. One or two deaths occurred every day, according to the information obtained under the Right to Information Act by Dainik Jagran.

The majority of the deceased children belonged to Scheduled Castes (SC) and came from poor and backward areas. They suffered from malnutrition, viral fever, blood infection and other diseases. Hospital authorities said that many patients were brought to the hospital too late, after consulting quacks or exorcists. The hospital authorities blamed poverty, lack of awareness and delayed treatment for the high mortality rate.

The hospital did not conduct any review or plan any action to prevent such a large number of deaths, despite having various schemes for the welfare of the poor. The hospital superintendent and the deputy superintendent said that they tried their best to save the children, but the severity of the disease was often beyond their control.\

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“People from rural areas especially come here when their children are in a very deteriorating health condition. The doctors do their best to save them, but the disease is too severe due to which some of them die. If the children are taken to the hospital as soon as they get sick, so many deaths could be prevented,” Dr Vinod Shankar Singh, Superintendent of Anugrah Narayan Medical College and Hospital said.

Deputy Superintendent of the hospital Dr NK Paswan said that malnutrition is also a major cause of child mortality. Because of poverty, they do not get the nutrition they need and become prone to illnesses. 

The families who lost their children at the hospital revealed the pathetic condition of the mothers and the children, who did not get proper nutrition and treatment. They also expressed their helplessness and grief over the death of their children.

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For instance, Sugiya Devi and her husband Shambhu Manjhi, who live in Barachatti in Gaya, brought their four-month-old daughter to the hospital on September 4 for treatment. The doctors said she had breathing difficulties. The girl was very weak and died the next day.

Pratima Kumari, Naresh Yadav’s wife from Fatehpur in Gaya, came with her eight-year-old daughter on October 14. The doctors said she had a blood infection and it was too late. She also died the next day. In another incident, Farhar Alam from Aurangabad also came with his five-year-old son, who had a heart disease and died on October 7.