Tamil Nadu Health Dept constitutes state-level committee to audit maternal deaths

Chennai, Oct 12 (IANS) Tamil Nadu Health Department has constituted a state-level committee to audit maternal deaths.

The committee, which will be headed by Shilpa Prabhakar Satish --Mission Director of the National Health Mission -- has been constituted following the representations from gynecologists following the maternal deaths.

The deaths of two women, Semmalar and Kuppi were probed by Madurai District Collector M.S. Sangeetha, who shot off a letter to the state health secretary, Gagandeep Singh Bedi and alleged that medical officers at the Government Rajaji Hospital (GRH) had fabricated the case sheets of the fatalities.

However, the gynecologists are of the opinion that the deaths occurred due to cardiac issue and not gynec issues.

The doctors of GRH have been boycotting elective surgeries since October 3 and the gyneacologists had protested in front of the IMA hall on Wednesday.

They were demanding the suspension of the Chief Health Officer (CHO), Vinoth Kumar.

The Tamil Nadu Medical Officers Association (TNMOA) state secretary, M. Akhilan had also written to the state health secretary on the same issue.

The Tamil Nadu Government Doctor’s Association (TNGDA) has also said that false news was being spread against the the GRH.

Sources in the state Health Department told IANS that the report of the state-level committee constituted now would provide proper information regarding the allegations being leveled against GRH.