62 days of anxiety, an eternity of grief: Child victim of alleged negligence dies in Hyderabad

“Last week they shifted her to a ventilator. And this morning, they said she is no more,” her father said.
62 days of anxiety, an eternity of grief: Child victim of alleged negligence dies in Hyderabad
62 days of anxiety, an eternity of grief: Child victim of alleged negligence dies in Hyderabad
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Sixty two days in the hospital couldn’t save six-year-old Sai Pravalika. Considering she was in a critical state because the hospital allegedly gave her contaminated saline, Prabalika’s grieving parents are enraged.

Early on Tuesday morning, the authorities at Gandhi Hospital told Sai Prabalika’s parents that she had passed away. “They informed me at 4am, while she died half an hour before that. Before they told me, police and ambulances were informed,” alleged Dharawath Bikshapathy, Prabalika’s father.

He claimed that the police arrived in the morning to warn him about not to create any problems in the hospital.

Prabalika was brought to the Gandhi Hospital on December 7, and was admitted for pneumonia and high fever. A few days later, she was administered intravenous fluid.

Soon after, Prabalika’s complexion turned reddish and she started shivering, says Dharwath. He noticed a yellowish fungal material and an insect in the fluid.

However, by the time he noticed the insect in the IV bag, half of its contents were already administered. Since then, Prabalika has been critical and was battling for her life in the hospital.

Back then, J Venkateshwar Reddy, Superintendent of Gandhi Hospital said that patients like Prabalika, who suffer from Neuronal Ceroid Lipofuscinosis, have a shortened lifespan with death occurring between the age of 6 and 13 years.

It was reported that Reddy has claimed that the saline bottles of the same batch were not found contaminated. A German company, which makes the saline bottles in India, also offered to cooperate in the investigation.

The official said even if the saline was contaminated, the infection can be controlled within a week.

“Last week they shifted her to a ventilator. And this morning, they said she is no more,” he said.

Dharwath added: “All the Ministers and MLAs came to visit us during that time just to seek media attention, but did not even extend any financial help. All the doctors and the state government who promote ‘Beti Bachao’ could not save my daughter. Now my daughter is not here with me. She won’t talk and we won’t hope anymore to see her healthy.”

Dharwath is a driver, and ever since Prabalika’s hospitalisation, he has been unemployed. He sold his land to pay her for her medicines, and his only hope now is his other daughter. “I’ll live for her,” he said.

The family took Prabalika’s body to their village in Jangaon district of Telangana on Tuesday for performing last rituals.

“I have been begging everybody for the past two months to save my daughter. My wife has been sitting quietly for hours, she is not talking or eating anything. Now it feels like our family has become incomplete without my daughter,” Dharwath said.

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