More Women Died, Hospitalised Than Men In Odisha In 2020 Pandemic Year

Bhubaneswar: In the pandemic year 2020, Odisha witnessed a sharp rise in female inpatients and maternal deaths, though overall female inpatient deaths have shown a fall.

According to the patient load data available with the State Health Department, Odisha had recorded a total of 223 maternal deaths during the period of April-June 2020. The total adult female hospitalisations stood at 3,36,293 during the period, which is nearly 2 per cent of the total female adult population in the State.

HOW HEALTHY IS ODISHA?

In the pandemic year, during the period of April – June 2020, a whopping 26.8 per cent or 1.241 crore people had visited the OPD (out-patient department) of State Hospitals to consult doctors, reveals the patient load data with the State Health Directorate.

Moreover, another around 1 per cent of the population or nearly 7.06 lakh needed hospitalisation, so have been admitted to the inpatient department (IPD) of various hospitals in the State, the data revealed.

However, the significant change observed in the year has been the rise in maternal deaths, despite a  drop in the overall female deaths during their hospitalisation tenure. The number of maternal deaths during the period of Apr-Jun stood at 223 vis-a-vis 178 in 2019-20.

Even the female inpatients in the State during the first three months of the pandemic (Apr-Jun) had posted a nearly three per cent rise to a total of 3.363 lakh.

FEMALE, CHILDREN BEAR HIGH HOSPITALISION LOAD

As per the State patient load data, women and children accounted for over 88 per cent of the hospitalisation load in the State. During the first three months of the pandemic year, a total of over 6.2 lakh hospitalisations in the State were of women and children.

Though high female inpatient load is partly attributed to childbirth cases, high children inpatient load indicate the sick condition of children in the State.  A total of 2,555 infants had died in the State during the period of Apr-June 2020.

A district-wise glance reveals that nearly 74 per cent of adult inpatients in Nabarangpur district were females. It was followed by Rayagada, Nuapada, Keonjhar, Boudh, Ganjam and Gajapati where adult females accounted for over 70 per cent of hospitalisation in the State.

DEATH BURDEN IN 2020

As per available data, during the first three months (Apr-Jun) of the pandemic year, the State saw a total of 6,355 deaths during the hospitalisation term. Significantly, around 2,573 such IPD deaths were female inpatients. The causes of death ranged from TB, pneumonia, cervix cancer to acute anaemia.

In maternal deaths, Ganjam and Sambalpur have together contributed over 24 per cent of the total.

DISTRICT HEALTH REPORT
For the first time, district-wise analysis reveals that Khurda has pushed down Cuttack to occupy the highest OPD load count in the State. The total OPD visits in the district stood at 9.88 lakh as against 9.3 lakh in Cuttack despite having the SCB Medical College and Hospital.

Ganjam occupied 2nd spot in OPD load generation in the State in the first three months of 2020-21.

DISTRICT SICK REPORT

In Malkangiri, a whopping 76 per cent of the population had visited OPDs in the first three months of the pandemic to consult doctors for their illness. Kandhamal followed with 47 per cent. In the State headquarters Khorda, nearly 44 per cent population had visited OPDs to consult about their illness.