Woman injured as ceiling fan falls on her at UPHC in Krishnagiri

KRISHNAGIRI:  A woman, who delivered a baby and was recovering at the Upgraded Primary Health Centre (UPHC) Anchetti, was injured after a ceiling fan fell on her on Saturday midnight. The baby, who was sleeping next to her, escaped without injuries.

The 22-year-old woman, Manjula (name changed), from a nearby village of Anchetti, was admitted in the UPHC on Thursday for her second delivery. On Friday evening, she gave birth to a baby girl.

According to sources, on Saturday night, a ceiling fan in her ward fell on her right leg. “It was a miraculous escape for my child. Had the fan fallen on my hand, it would have injured my child,” she said. Further, she alleged that there are no bolts on toilet doors in the hospital.

Commenting on the incident, Medical Officer of Anchetti UPHC N Chandramouli said “There are ten beds and four fans in post natal ward. Following the incident, other fans were checked Apart from this, bathroom doors and toilet doors will be fixed soon.” Further, he played down the incident and said it was not a big issue and that the impact of the fall was less severe as the fan first hit the rod of the partition screen near the bed.

Meanwhile, K Venkatraj (32) of A Pudhur near Anchetti, an attendee of another patient said no doctor or nurse is available at the hospital till 9. 20 am. “Many patients are waiting near outpatient ward,” he alleged. He also said that the staff were rude to the patients.  

When asked about this, Chandramouli said there is a staff shortage in the UPHC. “Out of five sanctioned doctors, only three are available. Among them, one is attending a training. Due to the staff crunch, we are providing outpatient treatment near the postnatal ward. People would have been unaware of the arrangement and waited outside,” he explained.  He said he will warn staff not to be rude with the patients.