Private hospital in Gonda closed temporarily after death of two newborns

The Uttar Pradesh health department temporarily closed a private hospital here on Friday following the death of two newborn boys a day before, an official said.

Deputy Chief Medical Officer Dr JM Chishti said that Manisha from Sataipurva in Gonda gave birth to a baby boy at the district women’s hospital on September 5. The newborn’s health deteriorated, after which he was admitted to a private hospital on Bahraich Road on Thursday, where the infant died.

The nursing staff handed over a bill of Rs 54,482 to the boy’s father, Mohit, who had already deposited Rs 45,000 at the hospital for the infant’s treatment. They refused to hand over the infant’s body until Mohit paid the remaining amount.

The family then approached the police and the administration. They alleged that the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit in the private hospital was being operated by the doctor working at the government-run district women’s hospital and the child was admitted under his supervision.

Meanwhile, another newborn boy admitted in the hospital also died the same day.

According to Vinay Singh, a resident of Kotiya Madara, his wife Kiran Singh gave birth to a baby boy on September 10 at the Community Health Centre in Katra Bazaar. When the condition of the newborn became critical, he was admitted to the same private hospital on Bahraich Road. The infant died at around 6 pm on Thursday.

With the death of two newborns, some people created an uproar, following which the hospital operator and the doctor fled the hospital.

Police and health department officials who reached the spot shifted other patients to the government hospital and sealed the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit of the Bahraich hospital.

Kotwali Nagar police station SHO Vivek Trivedi said Mohit and Vinay have lodged a complaint and demanded action.

Both the families have given written requests against conducting the post-mortem of their newborns, Trivedi said.