Tetanus Vaccine Shortage: Sutar Hospital Medical Superintendent served show cause notice
Pune: Taking serious note of a recent tetanus vaccine shortage, the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) has issued a show-cause notice to the medical superintendent of Jayabai Sutar Hospital and Maternity Home in Kothrud. The hospital reportedly ran out of tetanus injections for nearly five days, forcing patients to buy the vaccine from private medical stores.
In the notice, the civic body asked the medical superintendent to explain why the PMC head office was not informed about the stock shortage and asked him to submit a written explanation at the earliest.
If he fails to provide a satisfactory response, the authorities stated that they will take action against him under the Maharashtra Municipal Corporation Act, 1949.
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The move comes a day after HT highlighted that patients visiting the PMC-run hospital were being turned away or asked to arrange the vaccine themselves since the hospital ran out of vaccine. For this, the patients had to walk away without taking the mandatory tetanus shot, especially those coming in with minor injuries, animal bites or infection from wounds.
HT has reported that those who needed the vaccination for an emergency were forced to purchase it from the private medical stores. Following the issue, PMC has now sent a stock of more than 1,000 doses of tetanus vaccines to the hospital.
Dr Rajesh Dighe, Assistant Health Officer and City Immunisation Officer, PMC, told HT, "The notice has been issued to the medical superintendent, asking him to submit a written explanation why the head office was not informed about the stock being exhausted. It is the duty of the hospital head to keep a tab on the available stock of medicines and vaccines. However, there was no request or intimation from their side that tetanus vaccines are not available."
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