Baba Raghav Das Medical College hospital in Gorakhpur, which treats a large number of encephalitis cases, a disease that spreads due to lack of sanitation, is itself grappling with unhygienic conditions.
Piles of garbage along the corridors of the paediatric wing, and clogged drains present a picture of neglect. Ironically, a drain with dirty water, which creates conditions for mosquito breeding, sits along a wall that has colourful murals to spread awareness on how Japanese encephalitis and Acute Encephalitis Syndrome spread.
Intense scrutiny
After the deaths of 60 children in the neonatal Intensive Care Unit and the encephalitis ward over a span of five days from August 7 led to outrage, the hospital had been under intense scrutiny from all quarters.
On Wednesday, as officials at the college prepared for the visit of senior officers of the Uttar Pradesh government, the entrance of the encephalitis wing was quickly washed. Before that, garbage thrown by the waiting families and friends of patients as well as dung left by cows roaming the campus could be seen at the entrance.
Inside, as parents peeked through the ICU doors for a glimpse of their babies, garbage, including used diapers, water bottles and bags of bio-hazardous waste lay in the corridor. Through the glass doors, the uncle of one of the patients pointed towards a cleaner sweeping cotton swabs and gauze on the floor of the ICU.
The Hindu spoke to several doctors at the medical college who admitted that sanitation was a challenge.
Lack of awareness
One senior paediatric doctor said since the hospital catered to patients from low-income and less-educated background, there was a gap in awareness of cleanliness. Another doctor admitted that the level of hygiene needed for already critical patients, infants particularly, was lacking. The doctor added that without adequate security staff, doctors found it difficult to keep relatives of patients out of the restricted areas.
With two or three babies placed side by side on the same bed, as The Hindu observed on Wednesday, the risk of infections was evident.
The newly-appointed principal, P.K. Singh, said the hospital would be improving on its sanitation.