Daijiworld Media Network- Mangaluru (VP)
Mangaluru, Mar 8: The Government Lady Goschen Hospital here has taken a bold step to prevent deaths during child births at its Maternity and Child Health Hospital with the monitoring of high-risk pregnancies (complicated deliveries) registered from different parts of the district through a WhatsApp group.
For the past few years, efforts have been made to reduce the death rate during childbirth to zero due to a high-risk pregnancy tracking WhatsApp group, which is functioning under the supervision of hospital superintendent Dr. Durgaprasad. The death rate of complicated deliveries during 2023-24 till date (April to February) is zero, according to the hospital records.
WhatsApp group
In the rural areas of the district, in case of complications during delivery (high risk - excessive bleeding and other complications), such cases are directly referred to the Lady Goschen District Maternity Hospital in Mangaluru. But while travelling to Mangaluru from rural areas a lot of time is spent in negotiating the road traffic. Further, a lot of time is taken in registering the case, knowing the background (history), previous treatment and the blood group of the pregnant woman thereby increasing their risk.
To avoid this situation, information is collected through high-risk pregnancy tracking WhatsApp group.
The WhatsApp group includes the superintendent of Government Lady Goschen Hospital, district-level medical officers and Obstetricians from various hospitals. Supplementary information is also sent to this group from the road to hospital where the pregnant woman who underwent pregnancy is admitted. Thus, by the time a pregnant woman in danger from a remote area arrives at the Government Lady Goschen Hospital, the officials in the WhatsApp group (and the staff) would be ready and prepared by sending the necessary information to the hospital concerned.
This WhatsApp group also includes district health officers, RCH and other district-level officials. Along with the group, an internal WhatsApp group of the hospital has also been created. Thus, the information received in this district-level group is immediately forwarded to the internal group of the hospital and the group consisting of two staffers and officials of the hospital ranging from hospital security to OT (operation room) or ICU is also aware by the time the pregnant woman arrives and this helps the doctors and the hospital staff to prepare themselves at critical times to save the pregnant woman who is in danger.
A pregnant woman who is in labour pain mainly needs blood transfusion during an emergency which is also readied. Apart from this, a green corridor (zero traffic) system has been made available in the hospital from the premises to the operation theatre (OT) and also consists of a special group. Through this, the group has addressed the issue of deaths reported during childbirth in the hospital,
On an average, nearly 600 deliveries are reported at Government Lady Goschen Hospital in a month. Pregnant women from not only the district but also from 12 other districts arrive here for deliveries..An average of 15 to 20 child births occur every day and an average of 600 births take place here every month. Government Lady Goschen Hospital also holds the record for registering 800 deliveries per month (as of October 2020). During the year 2022-23, the hospital handled 6,018 deliveries.
Dr Durgaprasad, superintendent, Government Lady Goschen Hospital said, "A total of 2,340 pregnant women were admitted to the antenatal ward of the hospital between February 2023 and February 2024. Of these, 1,501 cases were classified as late deliveries. These complicated delivery cases include 596 cases with previous caesarean section, 412 cases of gestational diabetes, 128 cases of anaemia. Pregnancy tracking WhatsApp group is helping us to provide treatment to pregnant women during such critical times."