The abductor is usually a woman in the guise of a hospital aaya or dai, pretends to take newborn for dose of polio
KURRAM AGENCY: Recently, two very gruesome pieces of news that shocked everyone were the abductions of newborn babies at hospitals in Lahore and Faisalabad. In such cases, the abductor is usually a woman in the guise of a hospital aaya or dai and pretends to take the newborn for its first dose of the polio vaccine. I vividly recall, many years ago during my duty in a hospital, a healthcare nurse told me that she had administered the first dose of polio drops to a newborn baby. I immediately asked whether the baby had even been breastfed first, after being delivered through caesarean section. The nurse kept mum.
One can judge how we prefer the first dose of polio drops to a baby’s other basic health requirements, neglecting all norms. Moreover, the dangers of abduction using this excuse also exist. I sincerely suggest that the first dose of polio drops be administered in the presence of the parents and at the same time, a vaccination card also be issued. The safety measures adopted by hospitals are not very effective. I hope that hospitals will soon address this overdue, serious issue.
Dr Mukhtar Ali
Published in The Express Tribune, July 29th, 2015.
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