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Primary Health Centre under Banyan tree

Ten years long plight continues at Vanneri

As no building has yet been provided for the Primary Health Centre in Vannerikulam, pregnant mothers, babies and mothers in need of postnatal care are undergoing severe hardships in obtaining the service of the centre. Having managed to render its services in such a sad situation for the past ten years, the centre is now reduced in facilitation and support to the extent of a crisis where it is incapable of looking after and maintaining the health of the poor mothers and children of the area at large. As no formal centre has been established and with no building provided, the essential health services such as attending to health care needs of pregnant mothers and anti natal needs of mothers and babies and check ups for maintenance of their health i.e. noting the physical weights and nourishment deficiencies and diagnosis for prevalent diseases, administering preventive measures and instructing on those measures, distributing triposha for nourishment are all taking place in the open air and under a Banyan tree opposite the Government Central Dispensary. With all these inconveniences the services supposed to be carried out by the health centre are being rendered within the purview of a Central Dispensary in an area where there are 227 cases of pregnant mothers and 303 cases of babies for urgent attendance and to care for. These cases are attended only once a month. A part of the services are obtainable on the second Wednesday of every month and rest on the third Tuesday.

The mothers who had gathered in the hot sun when approached told that this sad situation had been unceasingly continuing for the last ten years and there was no sign of it coming to end even in the ceasefire conditions. The pregnant mothers and children were not even provided with seating facilities and they had to sit on the ground soiling themselves and their clothes. These mothers and children who were to be treated sanitarily had to be under such unhygienic conditions in the precincts of the Central Dispensary. They raised the pertinent questions as to when there would be suitable buildings and other necessary facilities for obtaining safe conditions for the treatment they needed and deserved.

21 January 2004

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