Andhra Pradesh's health and medical department shifted 6,166 pregnant women who were close to their delivery dates into hospitals in advance, as two cyclones bore down on the state in quick succession, and 2,924 of them, or 47.42 per cent, have already given birth.
The department said the exercise was meant to protect expectant mothers, women who had recently delivered and newborn babies from the effects of Cyclones Murasu and Arnab, which hit different sets of districts. Women were traced by field-level medical staff and moved to hospitals near their homes so that care would not be interrupted and travel during the storms avoided.
Across the 13 districts affected by Murasu, 3,066 pregnant women were shifted and 1,705 of them, or 55.61 per cent, have delivered, with Chittoor, Nellore and East Godavari recording the highest number of births. In the 20 districts affected by Arnab, 3,100 women were moved to hospitals and 1,219, or 39.32 per cent, have delivered so far. The Murasu group has thus logged the higher delivery rate of the two.
Visakhapatnam recorded the most deliveries in the Arnab group at 124, ahead of Kakinada with 110, Manyam with 108 and NTR district with 106. Officials worked from department records, picking out women whose deliveries were expected in the October 25 to November 8 window, so that those likely to go into labour around the cyclones got timely medical assistance.
Special attention went to high-risk pregnancies, women with severe anaemia and those carrying twins. They were shifted under medical supervision to nearby government facilities — primary and community health centres, area and district hospitals and government general hospitals — under the care of medical officers.
Transport arrangements involved 108 ambulances and Thalli-Bidda Express vehicles, along with other vehicles; some were arranged by medical officers and private cars were used where necessary. Separate arrangements were made to move 550 women who had booked deliveries at private hospitals to those institutions.
KVN Chakradhar Babu, the state health commissioner, said medical officers, ANMs and ASHA workers identified the women and helped shift them in advance. He said the teams also worked to ensure that medical services stayed available in the districts battered by the cyclones.
The department cited one such instance from the exercise: a normal delivery at the Marripudi primary health centre in Prakasam district at 5.58 pm on November 4, in which a girl weighing 2.5 kg was born. Both mother and child were reported to be in good health.
(With inputs from media reports)