30 July 2011
By, Somita Pal
Mumbai, India
Now private doctors have to compulsorily report all pregnancy cases that are referred to them. This data will be submitted to the corporation on a weekly or monthly basis. According to the authorities, this is to keep an eye on the sonography centres that women go to check on progress of the foetal growth.
Dr Asha Advani, special officer, family welfare department, Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation said, “We used to do this earlier to check the ante-natal care given to women in the city. But this will also help us to implement the PCPNDT act stringently in the city.”
The report submitted to the corporation will include information about the patient’s conditions, such as if she is high risk patient and so on. In the report the doctor needs to mention the number of patients referred for obstetrics sonography and the number of patients referred for medical termination of pregnancy (MTP).
“The record maintained by the doctor will have the name of the patient with address, obstetric history, doctor’s name and address of the sonography centre referred to, weeks of pregnancy, whether MTP was advised, whether MTP was conducted and patients’ signature,” said Dr Advani.
Mumbai’s child sex ratio fell from 922 girls for every 1,000 boys in 2001 to 874 girls for every 1,000 boys in 2011.In contrast, the child sex ratio in the suburbs slipped from 923 girls for every 1,000 boys in 2001 to 910 girls for every 1,000 boys in 2011.The drop in the number of girls in the city is almost four times that in the suburbs.
Meanwhile, the corporation is holding regular meetings with the doctors on PCPNDT norms. It had seized 35 sonography machines in the city in last two months. Though the machines were seized for minor paperwork errors, the authorities have decided to suspend registration and asked the concerned doctors to file an appeal.
The Indian Radiological and Imaging Association (IRIA), general secretary Dr Jignesh Thakker said, “Many of our colleagues whose sonography machines were sealed, havealready appealed. The authorities have promised that they will look in to the matter and release the machines at the earliest. The machines were seized because of incomplete paperwork and clerical mistakes. If they do not release it soon, we plan to approach the court.”
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