The PAA government has settled on the “bureaucratic nightmare” of COVID-19 tests for pregnant women
New Delhi:
The Delhi High Court called the AAP government today for failing to specify whether every pregnant woman who goes to hospital for childbirth or urgent treatment should undergo a COVID-19 test, symptomatic or not, saying that ‘a real problem has been turned into a’ bureaucratic nightmare ‘.
The High Court also stated that if testing was required, the taking of samples and the reporting of results should be done with minimum delay.
A bench from Chief Justice DN Patel and Judge Prateek Jalan said that he had given the Delhi government four to five opportunities since the filing of a PIL, demanding rapid tests and results for pregnant women, but he did not clarify this aspect.
“A real human problem has been turned into a bureaucratic nightmare. It is completely inexplicable. How long are we waiting (for clarification)? Four to five occasions have been given to resolve the problem since the petition was tabled,” said the bench. .
He added that the officials concerned appeared “confused” and “unable to understand that pregnant women do not go to the hospital 48 hours before giving birth”.
“When a pregnant woman has a baby or has an operation, she cannot wait 48 hours for a result. Sometimes she goes there at the last minute. Your secretaries (from the Delhi government) should understand that pregnant women are not going to not 48 hours before delivery. “
“According to your situation report, they will be kept in solitary confinement until the results are declared without a family member being nearby. In what type of society do we live,” the court said.
The observations of the court intervened after having taken note of the order of July 5 of the government of Delhi to the hospitals for the screening of patients at high risk and its situation report deposited in the case.
The court said that, in accordance with the July 5 order, the government said that all “high-risk people”, such as the elderly and those with serious illnesses like cancer, when they approach A hospital for the treatment of non-COVID diseases must undertake the Rapid Antigen Detection Test (RADT) before being admitted.
However, although the ordinance does not include the category of pregnant women, the Delhi government situation report indicated that they were also included, the bench noted and observed that there was a contradiction on this aspect .
“Your July 5 order and your situation report are completely contradictory,” he added.
Another contradiction pointed out by the court concerned the question of whether asymptomatic pregnant women should undergo RADT.
The bench noted that while previous Delhi government notices indicated that all pregnant women should be tested before being admitted, the court found that asymptomatic pregnant women should not be tested as a condition. prior to their admission.
The court ordered the Delhi government to correct the inconsistencies and to clarify whether asymptomatic pregnant women must undergo a COVID-19 test before being admitted.
If so, the Delhi government should ensure that the time required to collect samples and report results is minimal.
The bench stated that, according to the Delhi government situation report, the RT / PCR results are available in 4 to 5 hours and, therefore, why pregnant women should wait 24 to 48 hours.
According to the opinion of the Indian Council for Medical Research (ICMR), anyone who tests negative on RADT must undergo RT / PCR to confirm the result.
RT / PCR, short for Reverse Transcription Polymerase Chain Reaction, is a laboratory technique widely used in the diagnosis of genetic diseases and to measure gene expression in research.
With these observations and directions, the court scheduled the case for hearing on July 15.
The bench had, Wednesday, July 8, said that the demand of pregnant women for the COVID-19 test should be met immediately and its results announced quickly.
The court said that when pregnant women give birth, they cannot wait five to six days to test and report the results.
The Delhi government previously filed an affidavit stating that the COVID-19 pre-test was not required to admit pregnant women to hospitals for hospital procedures, including surgery and delivery, and in emergency situations. As a matter of urgency, treatment would not be refused for lack of test results.
The test can be done simultaneously with treatment and if the result is positive, the pregnant woman would ideally be transferred to a dedicated COVID-19 hospital for further care, the Delhi government told the high court.
He also said that he had “expanded” the use of rapid antigen testing in hospitals to ensure the availability of test results as soon as possible, which would resolve the difficulties faced by people / patients, including including pregnant women.
(With the exception of the title, this story was not edited by GalacticGaming staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
