Ranchi: The state government does not have any data on the number of Covid-19 patients who die soon after being declared cured of the infection. There are many such patients, the most high profile being Haji Hussain Ansari, a minister in the Hemant Soren cabinet, who died of a cardiac arrest on October 3 hours after he tested negative for the virus.
Like Ansari, recently cured patients who die of “other complications or comorbidities” are not included in the state’s tally of pandemic deaths and doctors have expressed concern over the lack of this key data, particularly with discharge norms being revised. As per the new protocols, a person who does not show Covid symptoms can be declared recovered without a confirmatory test.
For instance, a 70-year-old woman, admitted to the Covid-19 ward at Rims Ranchi, died on Wednesday evening, 15 days after testing negative for the virus at the hospital. However, she was not included in the Covid death count. “Her lungs were damaged while she battled the infection,” said a source at Rims.
Talking to TOI, a senior doctor and a member of the Indian Medical Association’s state chapter, said, “Most of these complications are triggered by the coronavirus infection and to not include them in Covid-19 deaths is not a correct practice as it conceals how vicious this virus really is. Moreover, not having any data on such casualties will only make people complacent, as has been seen across the country and in Ranchi during the festive season.”
Health experts suggest the number of people who have succumbed because of Covid is much higher than the number the government is reporting. As per the state’s daily bulletin, Jharkhand has lost 934 people to the infection till November 18. However, the monthly casualty figure has been falling since August, when Jharkhand recorded 313 deaths. Doctors expressed surprise that the figure fell to 289 in September and 172 in October. The toll this month is likely to be lesser, possibly in double digits, as the state has recorded just 50 Covid deaths in the first 18 days of this month.
When contacted, a senior doctor and public health expert said, “A Covid patient is defined as one who is infected till he tests negative. Once negative, he no more a Covid case. A patient testing negative may require ICU care further, but if they die, they are not reported as post Covid-19 deaths. Trust on the healthcare machinery is the biggest casualty in all this. Data should reflect reality and not be a tool for one-upmanship among states, districts and hospitals.”
Some doctors, who spoke to TOI on condition of anonymity, say the absence of data helps show the state government’s handling of the pandemic in good light. Even hospitals can show a low mortality rate and bereaved families are spared of the stigma as bodies can be taken home for last rites.
Offering a solution, the expert added “Post covid surveillance should be started immediately as the first wave has already came to an end. IDSP officials should start follow up of recovered patients at least on phone calls for 15 days to one month and should keep a tab on their health condition. These numbers will become critical to our understanding of the pandemic and how to deal with the next one when it arrives.” he said.
State IDSP official Dr Praveen Karn did not respond to calls and text messages from TOI for comment.