Measles outbreak: Nine health dept officials suspended as 6 more victims die

Health minister admits more than 100 children have died due to the virus in December.

SUKKUR: Sindh Health Minister suspended five health department officials on Monday as another six children died of measles, following the outbreak in upper Sindh.

Sukkur health EDO Dr Jay Ram Das suspended another two district public health officers and two vaccinators. Red Crescent Hospital, Sukkur, administrator Siraj Ahmed Malik said that 62 children suffering from the viral disease were brought from various parts of the province for treatment. The casualties were reported from Salehpat, Kandhkot, Khairpur and Qambar Shahdadkot, among other areas.

 

Sindh Health Minister Dr Sagheer Ahmed, who rushed to Sukkur late on Sunday, suspended Shikarpur’s Health EDO Dr Qazi Khursheed, public health officers in Sukkur and Larkana, and taluka health officers in Larkana and Salehpat - by far the worst hit by the outbreak - for failing to vaccinate children.

Chief Minister Qaim Ali Shah had also visited his hometown, Khairpur, on Sunday, and was beseeched by pleas from residents who claimed that their children died due to negligence of health authorities.

The measures come a day after the chief minister’s adviser for relief operations, Haleem Adil Sheikh, visited Sukkur and accused the health department of misreporting the casualties due to the measles outbreak. As of Sunday, the health department was claiming that 87 children had died due to the disease.



On Monday, the health minister admitted that over 100 children had died so far in December. According to unofficial figures, more than 125 children had lost their lives to the viral disease.

Talking to The Express Tribune, Dr Ahmed said that the officials were suspended on charges of negligence. They will be served show-cause notices, and further action will be taken once they submit their written statements. He also directed officials to ensure that no child between the ages of nine months an 10 years misses out on immunisation during the current malaria vaccination drive.

However, the health minister claimed that it would be premature to attribute all the deaths to the viral disease. Various health officials have claimed in the past that many parents do not vaccinate their children against the viral disease. Still others refuse to bring their ailing children to hospitals, because they believe in the Hindu mythology that high grade fever and red spots, traditional signs of measles, are in fact a signal that goddess Mata Rani has taken over the body of the children.

Sheikh, the adviser for relief activities, has encamped in Sukkur for the last three days and has been visiting the areas hit by the outbreak, including Shikarpur, Jacobabad and Kashmore districts. He said that it was the responsibility of the government to look after the people, but it had failed to do so. “How can a poor labourer, who earns Rs200 every day, bring his child to a hospital for treatment, and bear food and accommodation expenses also,” he asked.

A day earlier, Sheikh had visited the Red Crescent Hospital and awarded Rs10,000 to every parent who had brought their child for treatment.

The hospital’s administrator added that children are treated for free, and their attendants are provided food and blankets.

Bilawal demands proper treatment

Pakistan Peoples Party chairperson Bilawal Bhutto Zardari took notice of the measles outbreak and has asked the chief minister to ensure that children suffering from the disease receive proper treatment.

The government and the private sector should join hands to tackle the situation and protect our children, said the PPP chairman. “Children are our future and safeguarding them from every kind of diseases is our prime responsibility,” he added.

With additional information

by agencies

Published in The Express Tribune, January 1^st, 2013.