Doctors at ICH, where three children who had been admitted with fever died over Friday night and Saturday morning, said that another child, D. Keerthana (11), too had died there on Friday morning.
However, they added that Keerthana had endobronchial tuberculosis and heart disease with multi-organ dysfunction. She had been admitted on September 23.
Director of Public Health K. Kolandaisamy said all three deaths were suspected to be of mixed infections. “These can be a viral and a bacterial or more than one viral infection,” he said. Sanitation in Pozhichalur, the area the siblings were from, needed improvement he said, adding that it was a rural area that had seen a rise in population and construction activity.
Shock waves in community
The death of the siblings has sent shock waves among the residents of Pozhichalur. Public health department officials said the children had been admitted to a neighbourhood clinic for four days, and when the fever had not subsided, had been rushed to ICH.
Lakshita too had been treated at a private clinic earlier. Residents of Pozhichalur said public health and hygiene had taken a backseat in the locality. Garbage is strewn everywhere and sewage mixed with waste water stagnating in vacant plots is leading to a rise in mosquito density.
Residents’ welfare association members alleged that health officials only visited the area when things went wrong. “The last time they visited was during the December floods,” said N. Parimala, of Lakshmi Nagar. “Only after the incident occurred did senior officials queue up to conduct medical camps and other cleaning programmes,” she said.
A public health department official however said there was no need for panic.
A team of doctors and para-medical staff visited the areas to carry out inspections.
Precautionary measures such as cleaning up of the areas, additional medical camps etc., were also under way, he added.
Political parties reacted to the deaths of the children at ICH on Saturday calling for concerted action by the government. In a statement, DMK treasurer M.K. Stalin said the news of the death of the siblings and two other children at the ICH was shocking.
The dengue cases afflicting the city and its suburbs had been brought to the notice of the government by DMK MLAs but no preventive measures had been taken so far, he said.
“The Corporation has been sleeping for five years. The civic body and the public health department should wake up at least now and provide the best of treatment to children at ICH,” he said.
“Instead of focusing on public health, both the Health Minister and Health Secretary are camping at Apollo Hospital,” said PMK founder Dr. S. Ramadoss in a statement and demanded a compensation of Rs. 10 lakh for the families of the children.
Residents allege health officials
visited the area
only when things
went wrong
