Chaibasa: Five children suffering from thalassaemia have tested HIV-positive in Jharkhand’s Chaibasa town, leading to allegations of medical negligence at a government hospital.
Families of the affected children claim that contaminated blood supplied by the local blood bank at Sadar Hospital may have caused the infection.
Probe Ordered, Discrepancies Found in Blood Bank
Following the allegations, the Jharkhand government has set up a five-member medical team from Ranchi to investigate the case. The team, led by Director of Health Services Dr Dinesh Kumar, inspected the Sadar Hospital blood bank and the paediatric intensive care unit ward, collecting treatment details from the affected children.
“Initial investigation indicates that contaminated blood was transfused to a thalassaemia patient. Some discrepancies were detected in the blood bank during the probe, and the officials concerned have been directed to resolve them,” Dr Kumar said. The probe team also includes Dr Shipra Das, Dr SS Paswan, Dr Bhagat, District Civil Surgeon Dr Sushanto Majhee, Dr Shivcharan Hansda, and Dr Minu Kumari.
Officials Caution Against Early Conclusions
District Civil Surgeon Dr Majhee said one of the children, a seven-year-old, had tested HIV-positive more than a week ago. He added that further medical evaluation was needed to confirm the exact cause of the infection, as HIV transmission can also occur through contaminated needles or other medical exposure.
Officials said the child had received around 25 units of blood since starting treatment at the Chaibasa blood bank. The team is now tracing all blood units transfused to thalassaemia patients in recent months to determine how the infection spread.
West Singhbhum district currently has 515 HIV-positive cases and 56 thalassaemia patients. The health department has directed hospitals across the district to review blood screening procedures to prevent further incidents.
