Meerut Medical College: HIV positive boy tied to bedpost

[Guest guest]

HIV positive boy tied to bedpost

Prachi Bhuchar, Shyam Parmar. Saturday, July 29, 2006 (Meerut):

A 12-year old boy had been tied to his bedpost at the Meerut Medical

College after being tested HIV positive.

He had been sent to a juvenile jail in Meerut in April after

committing a robbery. But he was tested HIV positive last week.

But the Medical College proved hopelessly inadequate to deal with

his case, making the situation worse.

He was brought in the College ten days ago when a blood test

confirmed he was HIV positive.

For the last three months he has been at a juvenile jail in the city

and was brought in only when his condition was very critical.

Not ready to handle

The child had been placed in a ward with other highly infectious

patients and when the media asked why he was tied to the bed the

hospital authorities admitted they were not equipped to handle AIDS

patients.

" There are no adequate facilities in Meerut so we suggested that he

be transferred to another hospital. He is going to be admitted at

AIIMS where they can take good care of him, " said Manvender Singh,

ADM, Meerut.

He has now been shifted to AIIMS in the capital where he has also

been diagnosed with tuberculosis of the brain.

The administration in Meerut has come down heavily on the juvenile

jail and discovered that for the last two months there have been no

weekly health check ups.

" On June 30 they did inform the CMO that no doctor has been coming

in. But they should have informed the DPO or me, " added Manvender.

The last few months have been traumatic for the boy. Earlier he was

being shunted from a juvenile jail in Meerut to a hospital in the

city and now he is in an isolation ward in AIIMS.

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