Rabies vaccine shortage in Gurugram as government stock dwindles

GURUGRAM: There has been an acute shortage of rabies vaccine at the Gurugram civil hospital for the past one and a half months. Private hospitals and pharmacies in the city are also reporting the same, raising the possibility of a health crisis in the city.
Officials at the Civil hospital’s injection room told TOI on Monday that they did not have the required stock as the state headquarter had not sent it. According to hospital authorities, they have been trying to purchase the vaccine from the market but there is a shortage in the market, as well.

Senior hospital officials said the state bought a stock of 10,000 injections, last week, but the district got only 1,000 injections, out of which only 200 were allotted to the civil hospital. The doctors have been instructed to use the injections judiciously and only for the poorest patients.

On an average, nearly 100 patients visit the civil hospital for treatment related to dog bites. Officials said that patients were currently being asked to get vaccines from the market.

The two pharmacies, located outside the hospital, still have stock and are willing to sell the same.

“We are not getting the desired supply. The reason is not known. As government hospitals do not have stock, more people are buying it from pharmacies or private hospitals,” said Rajesh Goyal of Gurugram Chemists’ Association.

A spokesperson with Fortis said the hospital had sufficient stock but another leading private hospital, on the condition of anonymity, said it was facing a shortage too.

Several pharmacies in the city reported non-availability of the vaccine, adding that the supply could not keep up with the demand. “I sold 12 doses of the vaccine to a man, after which my stock has not been refilled,” said a prominent pharmacist at Gurugram’s Vyaapar Kendra market on Monday.

Two pharmacies in the Galleria market also said there was no stock left. “We have informed the district headquarters about the shortage and are trying to judiciously use the existing vaccines. The dog bite cases are on the rise as the civic bodies have not been able to curb the same,” said Pradeep Sharma, principal medical officer (PMO), Civil hospital, Gurugram.