Indian swine flu victim's parents file medical negligence complaint

Aug 6, 2009, 11:32 GMT

New Delhi - The parents of India's first swine flu victim, 14-year-old Reeda Shaikh, filed a complaint with police Thursday, alleging medical negligence by hospitals, news reports said.

The written complaint seeks criminal prosecution of the directors of the two private hospitals where the young girl was treated in the southern city of Pune, IANS news agency reported.

'The letter has been accepted, police will initiate appropriate

investigations,' Bund Garden Police Station senior inspector SM Nadgouda was quoted as saying.

Reeda Shaikh's family has alleged that she could have been saved if the private hospitals had provided prompt treatment - a charge denied by the hospitals.

Meanwhile, nine more cases of swine flu were reported in Pune, three of them from the school where Reeda Shaikh studied, health officials said.

The total number of H1N1 infections registered by the Pune health authorities stood at 118 as hundreds of panicky residents continued to queue at the state-run Naidu hospital to get tested for the virus.

'In view of the panic situation, today we have opened 15 health centres around the city to screen the people who turn up there. Only after the medical officer recommends, we shall admit them for further tests and treatment,' Pune Municipal Corporation Health Department chief SR Pardeshi said.

The city's health authorities advised private clinics not to refer all cases of cold and cough to the Naidu Hospital.

Students in 11 schools across Pune have tested positive for the H1N1 virus, leading to fear that it may be spreading rapidly among the student community.

Health authorities in the state of Maharashtra, have promulgated the Epidemic Diseases Act in the districts of Pune and adjoining Satara.

'The act has been invoked to prevent spread of this virus in the two districts. Under the Epidemic Diseases Act, the district magistrates are empowered to take measures to prevent an outbreak, including stopping social gatherings if needed,' Maharashtra Health Minister Rajendra Shingane said Wednesday.

Of the 172 swine flu case reported in Maharashtra, 127 have been reported from Pune and Satara districts. Most of the infected are schoolchildren.

A total of 26 cases have been reported from Mumbai, capital of Maharashtra.

According to Indian health authorities, 596 people have been infected by the H1N1 strain of influenza in the country. A total of 482 have been discharged, while the rest are undergoing treatment.