Health official directed to depute three doctors to Sadayampatti

Also directs Joint Director to file a fresh report on steps taken to control fever

The Madras High Court Bench here on Thursday directed the Joint Director of Health Services, Dindigul, to depute a team led by at least three doctors to control the outbreak of viral fever at Sadayampatti in Nilakottai taluk of Dindigul district.

A Division Bench comprising Justice V. Ramasubramanian and Justice V.M. Velumani passed the interim order after they found discrepancies in a report filed by the Joint Director on the number of doctors posted in the village for treating over 70 people suffering from fever.

The judges also directed the officer to file a fresh report by April 8, explaining the exact steps taken by him. The orders were passed on a public interest litigation petition filed by a resident of the village, C. Sathish Kumar, through his counsel S. Vanchinathan.

In the report perused by the court on Thursday, Joint Director C. Subramani said the outbreak came to light on February 25 during an inspection by a Health Inspector in connection with the Pulse Polio programme. It was found that 71 people were suffering from fever.

Immediately, the Block Medical Officer sent a medical team comprising one doctor, six village health nurses and three health inspectors to the village for giving treatment to them. The team gave treatment to the villagers between February 26 and March 7.

Out of 71 individuals who were suffering from fever, serology tests were done on 20 and 16 of them were found positive. Of the 16, nine were found to be suffering from chikungunya, two from leptospirosis and five from typhoid. The results for the rest of the four were negative.

After March 7, another team led by personal assistant to the Deputy Director of Health Services and comprising 26 village health nurses, one block health supervisor, 12 health inspectors, five sector health nurses and one community health nurse were posted in the village.

The team conducted intensive fever surveillance, besides involving itself in anti-larval work, indoor and outdoor fogging, mass cleaning and door-to-door spraying of chlorine, the Joint Director said, and added that two individuals had died owing to tuberculosis and heart disease respectively and not due to fever.