877 newborn babies and 61 mothers died as women refused hospital deliveries during the Covid pandemic in Meghalaya
The National Human Rights Commission had booked the high number of maternal and newborn deaths in the state during the pandemic.
The Meghalaya government has informed the NHRC that 877 newborn babies and 61 mothers have died because pregnant women refused to be admitted to hospitals for institutional deliveries during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Meghalaya government has recently submitted the action taken report to the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC).
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“The cause of neonatal deaths was investigated and it was found that the deaths were due to lack of medical attention and care as pregnant women refused to admit themselves to health institutions due to the fear and stigma of contracting COVID-19 . And also refusing to test for Covid-19,” the report said.
It was mandatory to segregate Covid-19 and non-Covid-19 patients during the time the deaths took place, so testing was done to avoid the spread of the disease, especially in hospital wards, it said.
The report said that even though the women did not visit health facilities, ANMs and ASHA were monitoring their health through regular home visits and counselling, urging them to visit hospitals during delivery. did.
The state government said that taking cognizance of the high number of deaths, the state government had launched a “rescue mission” and health teams to identify all pregnant women and register them on a mobile application to prevent such incidents. was constituted, the state government said.
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Apart from the pandemic, “underlying and often unresolved socio-economic and gender dimensions” added to the high number of maternal and child deaths in Meghalaya, the state administration said.
High-risk pregnant women were tracked and none of them were allowed to deliver at home and were asked to be admitted to hospitals at least two weeks before the due date, the report said.
“Rescue Mission” was launched with covid-19 management. It said that districts were asked to ensure 100% ANC (Anti Natal Care) registration for early treatment and prevention of maternal mortality and several strategies were adopted.
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(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by News East India staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
