Even as the leaders of Kerala’s ruling left, especially the CPI(M), and Opposition Congress are continuing their attacks against UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, the Centre and the BJP over the tragic deaths of children at the BRD Medical College and Hospital in Gorakhpur, no significant improvement is seen in the fever situation in the State which has claimed hundreds of lives this year despite the Government’s claims.
As per reports, 37 persons have died in Kerala in the past 12 days due to various types of fever including dengue and H1N1. Sources say that 22 of these deaths were due to suspected dengue. As many as four persons, including a Class 10 student, had died of fever on Sunday alone.
Around 20,000 people had approached the Government hospitals and health centers in the State in the past 12 days seeking medical assistance for fever. Among them, about 1,650 were suspected cases of dengue. This number could get higher still if the fever patients who had sought treatment at the private hospitals were taken into account, Government sources admitted.
According to experts, there is the need of increased alertness on the part of the Health officials and implementation of a monitoring system to control fever spread. Complicating the situation, cholera has also made an appearance in some areas of the State. Four cases have already been confirmed and at least one person has died due to the disease.
Critics say that the available statistics are sufficient to disprove the claim made recently by Marxist Health Minister KK Shailaja inside the State Assembly and outside that there had been a huge fall in the number of fever cases and fever-related deaths in the recent weeks.
The State Government has also claimed that all possible steps have been taken to control fever spread.
“The Government’s claim need not be totally true. Indeed there has of late been a decrease in the number of patients approaching hospitals with fever compared to a month back. But this need not be entirely due to the medical system’s efficiency. However, it is not yet time for the authorities to feel complacent,” said a senior doctor of a Government hospital in Thrissur.
As many as 451 persons have reportedly died of fevers in Kerala in the past eight months. Cases of dengue, H1N1 and other types of fever figured in this list, a Health official said. Reports also showed that 233 of these deaths were due to suspected dengue while 72 were suspected cases of H1N1 and other fevers.
As per reports, more than 23 lakh people had approached Government hospitals seeking treatment for fever this year. Among them were over 60,000 suspected cases of dengue. Also, more than 300,000 people had reached hospitals seeking treatment for diarrhea. The number of people who had reached private hospitals is outside this statistics.
“Monsoon is the time for fever spread but such an outbreak as seen in this season could have been avoided if necessary precautions had been taken in advance,” said a serving general medicine specialist in Kochi. “A State like Kerala which allocates over 15 percent of its budget for healthcare should not see outbreaks of such magnitude,” he added.
The State Health Department had issued an alert earlier this month after an 18-year-old migrant worker died of cholera in Pathanamthitta towards the end of July. The department had also confirmed three cases of cholera in Kozhikode district while reports about suspected cases had come from Palakkad and Malappuram districts.
A top State BJP leader alleged that it was inhuman and hypocritical on the part of the Kerala left to attack the UP Government and BJP over the tragedy in Gorakhpur when its own government in the State was unable to control the fever situation. “They always describe Kerala as a world model in healthcare. If that is so, how can they explain so many fever deathsIJ” he asked.