Probe ordered into deaths of 10 infants at Indian hospital

Probe ordered into deaths of 10 infants at Indian hospital

2011-09-04 02:49:07 GMT+7 (ICT)

HYDERABAD, INDIA (BNO NEWS) -- Indian officials have ordered a probe into the deaths of at least 10 infants within 48 hours at a hospital in the country's southeastern region, local media reported on Saturday.

According to the allegations, the deaths of the infants - all less than ten days old - occurred due to lack of oxygen supply as the ventilators they were put on were not functioning properly, the Khaleej Times reported.

The incident occurred at the Government General Hospital at Kurnool in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh, located around 180 kilometers (111 miles) south of the state capital, Hyderabad. Four deaths were reported on Wednesday and another six on Thursday.

The parents of the infants have accused hospital officials of negligence and some said hospital staff did not act promptly when the first deaths were discovered. In addition, with the Eid and Ganesh Chaturthi holidays, the parents allege that staff said they were not expecting to work because of the festivities.

State Health Minister Dr D L Ravindra Reddy, meanwhile, said he has requested the Director of Medical Education and neo-natal experts from the Niloufer children's hospital in the city to investigate the situation and submit a report.

Nonetheless, Hospital Superintendent Dr Sudarshan has already denied allegations that the deaths were caused by the lack of oxygen supply, arguing that these types of incidents are 'not uncommon' since the babies are admitted to the ward in serious health conditions and a low birth weight.

Joint Collector Budda Prakash, who was asked by District Collector Ramsankar Naik to also investigate the infants' deaths, stated that with the exception of two infants, the reason of the deaths were natural causes, adding that private hospitals had already denied the infants treatment because of their poor health.

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