12-yr-old gets fresh lease of life after State Health dept arranges Rs 17L for injections
Kolkata: Red tape — the phrase is very common among the bureaucracy across the country but what the state Health department has done may be a classic endorsement nullifying the conventional view on the expression.
Bengal Health department has arranged a fund of Rs 17 lakh within 48 hours to save the life of a 12-year-old boy who was admitted to the Calcutta Medical College and Hospital with haemophilia. The patient, Subhrojit Saha, had been bleeding while urinating and had been brought to the hospital only a few days ago.
He was admitted to the haematology department of the hospital. The patient was given two doses of FEIBA (Anti-Inhibitor Coagulant Complex) injections per day. It is a very costly drug and the CMCH had no adequate arrangement of the same. Hence, the CMCH authorities wrote to the Swasthya Bhawan seeking funds. Senior Health department officials readily acted and sent the drugs to the hospital within two days. The injections were eventually administered on the patient giving him a fresh lease of life.
A senior official of the CMCH said when a patient is affected with haemophilia, his/her blood does not clot resulting in continuous bleeding from the portion of the body which received injuries or a cut. He also added that the injections which were required for the boy costs around Rs 17 lakh. in a week. On a daily basis, the patient required medicines worth nearly Rs 2.5 lakh. Bengal is the only state in the country that provides all the health services in hospitals completely free of cost.
According to doctors, haemophilia is an inherited (genetic) disorder. Treatment includes regular replacement of the specific clotting factor that is reduced. Haemophilia is a rare disorder in which a patient's blood doesn't clot normally because it lacks sufficient blood-clotting proteins (clotting factors). If one is affected he/she may bleed for a longer time after an injury. Deep bleeding inside one's body is a major concern and internal bleeding for a longer period of time can damage organs and tissues and may be life-threatening.
The health condition of Subhrojit, a resident of Belghoria in North 24-Parganas, has improved. Supriya Saha, the patient's mother, has expressed her gratitude to the Health department and the hospital whose prompt action saved her son's life.
Dr Indranil Biswas, medical superintendent of the CMCH, on Tuesday said: "As we were short of the expensive medicine, we wrote a letter to the Swasthya Bhawan giving details of the patient. The Health department has acted promptly and arranged funds within a very short notice."
