MUMBAI: In a shocking incident that reflects the sorry state of the city's healthcare infrastructure, a premature baby girl who was admitted to the BMC-run Oshiwara maternity home suffered burn injuries after a short circuit at the hospital on Saturday. She was rushed to Nair Hospital at Mumbai Central but is still battling for life. The yet-to-be-named baby who was kept in an electronically connected incubator (warmer) because she was underweight at birth suffered 10 to 15% burns to her head and shoulder.
"The baby is very small and it is too early to talk about her condition. We are giving her high antibiotics and doing all we can to help her," said paediatric surgeon and Nair Hospital dean Sanjay Oak who is treating her. While the parents were not available for comment, health activists say safety should be the first priority in BMC's monsoon preparedness for hospitals.
"The incident is absolutely shocking. Agreed that the short circuit may have been an accident, but authorities must have safety devices in place especially in sensitive areas such as the intensive care unit and ensure that they are working," said Arokya Mary, a child rights activist with voluntary organisation Yuva adding that civic authorities are answerable since the incident took place in their premises. Citizen's corporator Adolf D'Souza felt the incident underlined that BMC hospitals were "not in the condition that they should be in".
Authorities maintained that they were investigating the incident. "We are trying to find out how the child got injured," said Cooper Hospital's medical superintendent Dr S S Gawde who is in charge of the ICU. "We immediately shifted the other five children to another unit," he said.
