Necessary anti-rabies vaccines to reach Primary Health Centre

Given the increasing stray dog ​​menace, the Central Health Department has suggested that all health centres in the country stock anti-rabies vaccines and serums. It is a startling reality that many hospitals in Kerala are facing a dearth of these medicines which are needed for emergency use.

The new central government order suggests that the medicines should not only reach elite hospitals but priority should be given to primary health centres.

Not just in rural terrain, but the stray dog menace is now ubiquitous across the country. Every day there will be some report citing dog bites, and that too now proliferating in the residential complex where influential people live. The increasing number of dog bite cases in hospitals suggests that the measures taken at the government level to curb the menace have gone astray.

According to the report of the World Health Organization, 55,000 people die of rabies a year worldwide. About 20,000 of them are Indians. Death due to rabies can be prevented by getting the vaccine immediately after the bite. But with hospitals not stocking enough of the medicines, many people have to succumb to the most miserable death.

Some people are that naïve and have not yet recognized that there are ample ways to treat rabies. For them, rabies has a 100 per cent mortality rate and cannot be treated. These people often fall prey to the misinformation and die tragically. Non-availability of medicines in government hospitals and high prices charged by private hospitals keep some people away from getting vaccinated on time.

As a solution to this problem, the centre has instructed the states to always have anti-rabies medicine in stock even in the primary health centre. There is also an assurance that the Center will provide whatever funds are required for anti-rabies activities. This scheme will come under the National Health Mission.

Even a minor bite from a pet animal can be destructive and can invite rabies. It is for the same reason that health experts advise people to get vaccinated even if it's a minor bite. In Kerala, people are diligent when it comes to the upkeep of health, as the number of people reaching for such injections is also seeing a rise. However, some people neglect these bites from their pets in the vague belief that the bruise is not anything harmful.

As of now, with a vaccine dearth seen in most hospitals, people suffering from dog bites need to go to taluk-district hospitals or medical college hospitals for vaccination. In addition to intensifying rabies prevention efforts, measures to reduce stray dog ​​nuisance also need to be strengthened. It is well known that the programs initiated in the state have not made much progress in this regard.

Even the ABC project, which was started to curb the population of stray dogs, was not successful enough. The lack of enthusiasm and the shortfall in infrastructural prowess contribute to the dilapidated state of stray dog prevention in the state. Kerala, touted for excellence in health department should ramp up work to prevent stray dog menace at the earliest.