Reduce snake bite mortality in India

A comprehensive model for snake bite treatment in India starts from public, society, different social organizations, different electronic & print media, strengthening our health care systems & manpower from PHC level and willingness of our policy makers and Government. We all must work as a unit, then only we can prevent many preventable deaths from snake bite.

By our concept of VRT, FRT and snake bite room and forming and sustaining the chain(Fig13) starting from Community to all Government Rural Hospitals of Assam and India,We are sure we can prevent many preventable deaths as proved by our Demow model.

ZERO SNAKE BITE DEATHS :: IMPOSSIBLE TO POSSIBLE.

India is World’s ‘Snakebite Capital’ with 2.8 million bites a year with 35,000–50,000 people dying per year according to World Health Organization (WHO) [1,2]. Lack of a coordinated comprehensive care in snake bite management is the key factor of highest numbers of deaths and morbidity in India.India and our state, Assam too lacks comprehensive care model in snake bite management.However we ,Assam has no robust data about snake bite related deaths.

We received phone calls from Digboi on 11/06/2022,patient was bitten by a snake ,they went to faith healer/tantra and mantra and died.They did not reported hospital.How many deaths are happening like this without notification to health centre,we donot have data.

There is no LINK between snake bite and hospital care.Therefore we tried our best to create and sustain this link.

Till 11th June of 2022,we have received reports of 3 deaths from various parts of Assam. Two were from Digboi and one was from Dhuburi.Unfortunately all these deaths could have been prevented if both public and health care workers were aware of venomous snake bite symptoms.

For successful care of snake bite victims,we have to formulate comprehensive care to such victims,so that they shouldnot dissatisfied from our care.We also have to remember that snake bite is a poor men’s acute emergency.Therefore,we must try our best not to give economic burden to these poor patients in this snake bite crisis time.

Therefore Comprehensive care is a planned coordinated preventive,promotive,curative,mental & socioeconomic care to snake bite victims. India lacks the coordinated movement of snake bite victims from field to hospital.Demow Model hospital cum CHC,tried their best to provide Comprehensive care to these victims since 2018.

Why India need comprehensive care?

  1. Lack of awareness amongst public.
  2. Majority attended faith healers.
  3. Poorly trained health care workers (HCW) in rural districts.
  4. Fear of HCW to administer ASV (Anti snake Venom).
  5. Poor transportation system to hospital.
  6. Delayed ASV administration
  7. Nonavailability of ASV
  8. No support to victim’s family due to huge financial burden, if treatment is prolonged.
  9. No address to mental issues post snake bite
  10. It is not approached as acute emergency.
  11. Myth that snake bite cases can be treated only in tertiary center.

India and Assam have huge gaps from prehospital, point of source hospital, secondary care hospital to Government level. For effective treatment of snake bite victims, we should have an organized care system.

Prehospital management: Venom Response Team (VRT)

Prehospital management is greatly neglected in India due to lack of education of our society. After snake bite our public completely lost and often misleaded. We started to train and educate public since 2008(Fig A). A VRT can be constructed to guide snake bite victims in each gram panchayat level comprising gram Sevak, local organizations & ASHA workers. They can be trained so that they can activate, communicate HCW & can transfer victims safely to nearest hospital. It is the need of the hour. Our model focused to educate, empower, and train public. These trained/educated public are called VRT. We have done till now 150 numbers of community awareness programme in and around Demow and Sib Sagar district. We have also collaborated with APADA MITRA project of central Government under District Disaster Managaemner Society(FigB).Our plan is to create train and educate health volunteers under APADA Mitra  Project, which are now officially called VRT. We have formed a WhatsApp group with Public of different communities along with trained APADA MITRA health volunteers. These VRT will notify us as well as safe and scientifically transfer snake bite victims to nearby hospital.

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