GMCH infant death: Nurse arrested, family cries ‘scapegoat’, colleagues flag work load
Colleagues claimed accused single-handedly managed the SB room, which had 35 babies
A file image of Guwahati Medical College & Hospital (Photo: gmchassam/X)
Guwahati, August 20: Two days after the death of a four-day-old infant at the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) of Gauhati Medical College and Hospital (GMCH), police have arrested a nurse on charges of negligence.
The arrested nurse, identified as Bhanupriya Misong, was reportedly the sister in-charge of one of the NICU units on the night the incident occurred.
A resident of Dhemaji’s Sissikolghar, Misong is currently being interrogated at the Bhangagarh Police Station.
The arrest followed an FIR lodged by the infant’s father, Utpol Bordoloi, against GMCH authorities soon after the tragedy, on Monday.
While police have remained tight-lipped about the arrest and investigation, Misong’s colleagues, who accompanied her family members to the police station on Wednesday, defended her, citing severe work load at the hospital.
“Bhanupriya alone can’t be held responsible as there were other nurses and doctors on duty that night. She was taking care of 35 babies alone, and that’s a lot of pressure,” one colleague told a TV channel.
According to the nurses, five nurses and two doctors were on duty in the NICU that night, with the unit divided into three categories — term, pre-term, and SB. Misong, they claimed, was single-handedly managing the SB room, which housed 35 babies.
Her family, meanwhile, alleged that she was being made a scapegoat to shield higher authorities. “Our daughter has been unfairly targeted. We are not blaming anyone, and what happened is very unfortunate, but why arrest only her? That is what makes us suspicious,” a family member told the press, on Wednesday.
Meanwhile, a three-member committee continues probing the case with a comprehensive report expected in the next couple of days.
On Monday night, Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, during a visit to GMCH, had announced the probe and dismissed suggestions that overcrowding was responsible for the infant’s death.
The Chief Minister also issued a stern warning to hospital staff, particularly nurses, against negligence. He cautioned that those found guilty of dereliction of duty would be transferred to far-off postings as a deterrent.
The conflicting claims between the government and Misong’s colleagues have now brought to light concerns over staff shortage and workload at GMCH, even as the probe continues into the circumstances leading to the infant’s death.