NICH fire that left neonate dead was an accident: Dr Azra Pechuho

Sindh’s health minister has declared that last week’s fire at the National Institute of Child Health (NICH) that left a neonate dead was an accident.

Dr Azra Pechuho told the media during a news conference at a hotel on Wednesday that the incubator in which the four-day-old girl was placed had caught fire due to an electrical fault.

The health minister said that the hospital staff had done their best to save the lives of the children who were in the surgical intensive care unit of the health facility.

“An inquiry conducted by a team of experts has found that the warranty of the burnt incubator had expired and that its electric circuit was defective,” she added.

“After going through the relevant CCTV footage and interviewing the staff as well as the director of the NICH, it has emerged that the fire was an accident.”

Flanked by Health Secretary Zahid Ali Abbasi and other officials, Dr Azra said the fire was a not a human error, as that much was evident from the CCTV footage. She added that the inquiry committee has recommended that defective incubators not be used at hospitals any more.

Defending the hospital staff, she said that according to the footage, nurses and other staff members tried to save the child from burning, but the fire in the incubator was so fierce that they could not take the baby out of the burning machine.

She deplored the fact that the building of the NICH is an old structure that has no fire exits, saying that a fire escape in each ward of the building cannot be provided.

Family planning

The health minister announced on the occasion that family planning services are being provided in two selected districts of Sindh through the Delivering Accelerated Family Planning in Pakistan (DafPak) programme, saying that this will improve the quality of family planning services in the province. “Counselling services regarding family planning will also be provided to the people in Sindh. We are also planning to pass a piece of legislation through the assembly in this regard.”

Medicine shortage

Responding to a question, Dr Azra said doctors and paramedics who are protesting outside the Karachi Press Club should talk to the health department for the acceptance of their demands instead of demonstrating. She added that the shortage of medicines at public hospitals will soon be over.

“A central procurement committee has been formed on the court’s orders to procure medicines for public hospitals. The committee has cleared antibiotics for the health facilities, while other medicines will also be available within a few days.”

Replying to another query, the minister said that local governments are responsible for controlling stray dogs. She added that they are trying their best to ensure the provision of rabies vaccine and treatment facilities for dog-bite victims.