Medical officer, nurse suspended for administering wrong vaccine

Officials said that the two officials, who were deputed at Atkoneshwar healthcare centre, without inspecting any case paper administered an injection of anti-rabies vaccine (ARV) to a person who was at the centre to take a dose of Covishield on Monday.

A medical officer and a nurse attached with Kalwa hospital in Thane have been suspended for allegedly administering a wrong vaccine dose to a Thane resident.

Officials said that the two officials, who were deputed at Atkoneshwar healthcare centre, without inspecting any case paper administered an injection of anti-rabies vaccine (ARV) to a person who was at the centre to take a dose of Covishield on Monday.

According to Thane Municipal Corporation officials, the victim has been identified as Rajkumar Yadav.

“Immediately after entering, he saw medical health officer Dr. Rakhi Tawde and inquired about vaccines. Tawde, without seeing his case paper or asking which vaccine he was looking for, instructed him to stand in a queue where doses of anti-rabies vaccine were being given,” said Additional Municipal Commissioner Sandeep Malvi, who issued the order of their suspension on Tuesday.

Yadav accordingly sat in the queue of the ARV, after which nurse Kirti Popere administered to him a dose of ARV without asking or checking his case paper.

A senior official said that Yadav is stable and there were so far no side effects of the ARV injection.

The incident came to light soon after the ARV dose was administered, as Yadav inquired with the officials on duty there.

“He was told that Covishield was being administered in a school next to the centre, and owing to a misunderstanding and negligence by our staff, Yadav got a dose of ARV instead of Covishield,” said Malvi.

Yadav then approached a local politician who raised the issue, after which TMC officials were informed.

Accordingly, on Tuesday, Malvi issued two orders suspending Tawde and Popere on grounds of dereliction of duty by both of them.

“Hence it has been decided by the disciplinary committee to take disciplinary action and suspend the nurse as well as medical officer till further orders,” said an officer.

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