Poor management of electrical system, ACs blamed for RIMS-Adilabad tragedy

Five infants died at the Special Neonatal Care Unit of RIMS, Adilabad, after alleged poor maintenance of air-conditioners and electrical systems. Officials admitted the institute suffers from staff shortages, inadequate electricians, and reliance on outsourced agencies, which has worsened upkeep and patient care.

Adilabad: Poor management of the electrical system, particularly the air-conditioners, was attributed to the tragic deaths of five infants at Monday midnight at a Special Neonatal Care Unit (SNCU) in Rajiv Gandhi Institute of Medical Sciences (RIMS), Adilabad.

Officials said that over 130 air conditioners were installed in different wards and offices of the 750-bedded institute established in 2008. The machines were purchased in 2016. Since the institute had not been staffed by regular electricians, three outsourced electricians were recruited to take up various jobs including maintenance of the machines.

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“However, the electricians have been assigned some other tasks rather than the electrical works. This is affecting not only maintenance of the electrical system, but also AC machines. Delay in repairing machines and filling sub-standard refrigerant gases and overload on the compressor might have caused the mishap,” a source said.

Similarly, the institute faces interruptions and fluctuations of power due to faulty wiring at regular intervals. The machines develop glitches due to delay in maintaining gases meant for cooling when overheated. All these factors affect performance of the machines and sometimes can lead to explosions, an electrical expert opined.

Employees say mandatory inspection of the electrical system and of air conditioners is not being carried out once every three months. Maintenance of the electrical and the machines has been ignored. Problems are being addressed only after repeated requests. A shortage of electricians has become a bane for the institute, an official opined.

Meanwhile, the institute is under-staffed. For instance, it has 150 doctors as against the sanctioned strength of 350 doctors. The number of nurses and other staffers is half that of the sanctioned posts. This has resulted in increased workload on doctors, nurses and the staffers. The institute is solely being administered by the director.

Responsibilities of the director, deputy superintendents, resident medical officers and other administrators are not being decentralized properly. As a result, outsourced agencies are controlling the administration. The agencies are drawing flak for neglecting maintenance of the electrical system, airconditioners and care for patients.

When asked, RIMS director Jaisingh Rathod said steps were being taken to appoint electricians and to ensure proper maintenance of the electrical system. He admitted that doctors, nurses and paramedical staff were facing increased workload. Measures were being taken to resolve major challenges of the institute, he added.