Dengue Deaths in 33 Selected Hospitals Are Only Reported As ‘official’ in Delhi

Only people who die at one of the 33 public hospitals that have been designated for dengue care in Delhi will be counted among the "official" deaths reported by the municipal corporations. Civic body which is responsible for notifying dengue cases from across the city depends mainly on the reports sent from hospitals and few private others to prepare its weekly report. The capital has more than 1,100 health institutions. "Health is a state subject. The private hospitals, nursing homes and even those run by the Center do not come under our jurisdiction. We do not have powers to prosecute the hospitals for not notifying dengue or conducting the wrong test," said Dr D K Seth, director, hospital administration at North Corporation.

The confirmatory tests for dengue that are widely accepted are IgM Elisa and NS1Ag Elisa. 17 people have died due to dengue this season and 1 total of 5982 dengue cases have been confirmed. "Only IgM Elisa and NS1Ag Elisa are acceptable as confirmatory tests for dengue. Less than 5% of death reports that are sent to us fall under this category," Dr Seth said. The Delhi government had canceled the leaves of all doctors and paramedical staff to deal with the rush and special fever clinics were started across the city.

Source-Medindia