Raj govt orders detailed probe into maternal deaths in Bhilwara and Banswara

Jaipur, July 11 (IANS) The Rajasthan government has taken the recent eight maternal deaths (six in Bhilwara and two in Banswara) with utmost seriousness and has ordered a comprehensive investigation into the incidents, officials said on Saturday.

State Health Minister Gajendra Singh Khimsar said that specialist officers from the Directorate of Medical and Health Services have been deputed to both districts to ascertain the actual causes of the deaths through a scientific and fact-based inquiry.

The Minister added that a meeting of gynaecologists from across the state has been convened on July 12 to review the cases, deliberate on necessary corrective measures, and formulate recommendations to further strengthen maternal healthcare services.

He will also visit Bhilwara on Tuesday to review the situation on the ground.

Khimsar said that the preliminary report received from Mahatma Gandhi Hospital in Bhilwara has found no evidence of infection in the operation theatre.

The report indicates that the five women who died over a period of six days succumbed to different and unrelated medical complications, with no common cause linking the deaths.

One patient died due to Myocardial Infarction (heart attack) and was not pregnant.

Another patient, who did not undergo surgery, died due to acute gastroenteritis, hypovolemic shock, septicemia, intrauterine fetal death, and severe anaemia.

Third patient died due to Pulmonary Thromboembolism while the fourth was a patient who succumbed to HELLP Syndrome and Eclampsia resulting from Severe Pregnancy-Induced Hypertension.

The fifth patient died due to Atonic Postpartum Hemorrhage with Disseminated Intravascular Coagulation.

Minister Khimsar emphasised that these were distinct medical complications and that no operation theatre-related infection has been identified as the cause of death in any of the cases.

He added that attributing all five deaths to a single cause or to an operation theatre infection is factually incorrect.

Khimsar clarified that microbiological culture testing of operation theatres is a routine infection-control practice followed as per established protocols.

During this process, the concerned operation theatre is kept out of use after fumigation and disinfection until culture reports are received.

The Minister told that a routine culture test of operation theatre at Mahatma Gandhi Hospital was conducted on June 29. After the culture report received on June 30, the hospital discontinued use of the operation theatre as a precautionary measure, and no surgeries were performed thereafter.

The Health Minister said that a multidisciplinary team of experts from the Directorate will conduct a detailed investigation into every case.

The inquiry will comprehensively examine all relevant aspects, including the complete treatment provided to each patient; Clinical management and monitoring protocols; Quality of medicines and consumables; Infection-control measures; status of operation theatres and medical equipment; and any other factors relevant to patient care.

He reiterated that the final conclusions regarding the causes of the incidents will be drawn only after the expert committee submits its detailed investigation report.

Khimsar said the incidents are deeply unfortunate and expressed heartfelt condolences to the bereaved families.

He assured that the state government is conducting the inquiry with complete transparency and impartiality to establish the facts and identify measures to prevent similar incidents in the future.

He also said that strict action will be taken against anyone found guilty of negligence based on findings of the investigation.

–IANS

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