SHILLONG:
Arphon D Marak, a constable at Tura Police Station, and his wife constantly worried about their one-and-a-half-year-old daughter Chuesa Amora R Marak, whose fingers, nails, and lips had turned blue. Fearing the worst, they took her to Tura civil hospital for a check-up, where she was diagnosed with congenital heart disease (CHD) and was referred to Shillong for further treatment. The doctors in Shillong recommended that the child undergo surgery, but her parents were apprehensive and did not go through with it.
A study by the Paediatric Cardiac Society of India (PCSI) estimates that the number of
children born with congenital heart disease in India is more than 2,00,000 per year. Of these, about one-fifth are likely to have serious defects, requiring an intervention in the first year of life.
“Poor access to quality health care for children has long been hindered by challenges like lack of awareness, the mindset of parents, and poverty,’’ said Ramkumar S, Mission Director, National Health Mission, Meghalaya.
When Chuesa Amora R Marak did not start walking even at the age of two, her parents took her to the District Maternity and Child Hospital in Tura where she was referred to a
specialist at the District Early Intervention Centre (DEIC) under Rashtriya Bal Swasthiya
Karyakram (RBSK).
The government of Meghalaya, under the leadership of Chief Minister Conrad K
Sangma and Health minister James P K Sangma has taken various initiatives to counter
CHD.
After understanding the importance of speciality treatment for CHDs, MoUs were
signed with hospitals like Apollo Chennai, Apollo Guwahati and Amrita Institute of Medical
Science (AIMS) for secondary and tertiary care management for all paediatric cardiology
cases detected by DEIC under the RBSK scheme from the state. These MoUs were signed between the RBSK, National Health Mission (NHM), Meghalaya and Apollo Hospital Enterprise in May 2022 in the presence of Ram Kumar and with AIMS in July 2022.
Having recognised Arphon D Marak and Mairinia R Marak, the child’s parents’ apprehensions, the doctors and social workers at DEIC counseled them on the importance
of getting little Chuesa treated/operated at the earliest.
“The staff made sure that we understand the procedure thoroughly and they were always available and willing to answer any of our doubts even over the phone’’, said the father.
The DEIC has been able to screen over 1,78,000 children last year in Garo Hills region
alone. Children with mild ailments are referred to civil hospital for treatment. However, for
children with serious conditions such as CHD, Corneal Opacity, Cleft Lip, etc., are referred to tertiary care centres such as the North Eastern Indira Gandhi Regional Institute of Health
and Medical Sciences (NEIGRIHMS) Shillong, Bansara Eyecare Centre, Amrita Institute of
Medical Sciences and Research Centre (AIMS) Kochi and Mission Smile, Guwahati.
Chuesa was one of the 14 CHD patients recommended for surgery from the Garo Hills region during a CHD screening camp organised by the DEIC in Tura. Surgery for these 14 CHD child patients were conducted by some of the country’s top cardiologists at AIMS, Kochi as per the MoU signed between the state government and the hospital.
“Under the RBSK scheme all expenses, including travel, accommodation and treatment were covered for all patients,’’ informed Johnson J Nongbet, state RBSK Consultant, NHM, Meghalaya.
A month after the successful surgery of little Chuesa, her mother fondly looks at her
daughter walking and playing about with her peers.
“We have even enrolled her in a play school now,” a grateful Mairinia R Marak says. “After the surgery, the bluish tint on her skin has disappeared, and as a mother, I am overjoyed to see my daughter walking, mingling and playing about as other normal kids of her age,” she said.
The parents still visit DEIC regularly for check-ups and follow-up care to ensure that she
leads a normal life.