The Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) has issued a notice to the private hospital where a 31-year-old woman from Cox Town died of rabies for allegedly failing to follow protocol and inform them of the case.
All private hospitals in the city are required to inform the civic body when a patient with any communicable disease gets admitted, said BBMP health officials. “In this particular case, the private hospital not only failed to inform the BBMP at the time of admission, it did not intimate the civic body even after the victim's death,” an official alleged. “We have taken the medical reports of the victim, including laboratory reports.”
The BBMP’s Animal Husbandry Department has taken up vaccination of stray dogs in Cox Town. In all, 48 stray dogs had been administered the anti-rabies vaccination (ARV).
Officials claimed that this was the first rabies death reported this year. In 2019, two deaths were reported but they occurred in areas outside BBMP limits. Three deaths were reported in 2018 – in Gavipuram Guttahalli, Jayanagar 3rd Block, and Nagawara.
“Following the recent rabies death, we have intensified the awareness campaigns in Cox Town and surrounding areas about preventing dog bites and precautions to be taken,” the official said and added that all referral hospitals of the BBMP have adequate stock of rabies immunoglobulin and anti-rabies serum.
Former joint director (animal husbandry) Parvez Ahmed Piran said dog bites are usually attributed to factors ranging from territorial, maternal or sexual aggression to aggression due to rabies. “Three factors – sexual aggression, maternal aggression and aggression due to rabies – can be taken care of by intensifying Animal Birth Control (ABC) and ARV programmes. Awareness campaigns must also focus on steps to be taken after a dog bite,” he said.