Funding cuts threaten diabetes care for kids at PGI | Chandigarh News

Chandigarh: A silent anguish of parents echoes through the corridors of the PGI as a severe funding crisis starves over 100 young lives of essential diabetes care. These are children from Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, and Uttar Pradesh, battling Type 1 diabetes, a condition that demands constant vigilance and a steady supply of life-saving insulin. The recent withdrawal of support from a key NGO has turned their fight for survival into a desperate struggle, with tragic consequences already unfolding.The weight of this crisis is borne most heavily by families like Preeti’s. A single mother from Jalandhar working as a domestic helper, Preeti faces the unimaginable burden of providing for not one, but three children afflicted with Type 1 diabetes. “I do not know if this will be my last visit to the clinic for the follow-up. I was unable to get insulin for all three of my children,” she said.The medical professionals, who dedicate their lives to these children, find themselves in a distressing position. Prof Devi Dayal, who leads the endocrinology unit in the paediatric department at PGI, said, “Most of these families are unable to spend Rs 4,000 a month on their children’s care.”The consequences of this financial strain are immediate and terrifying. Prof Dayal reveals, “When they were told that the supply of free insulin and strips would be given for a month instead of three months, some of them started using the least dose, which can be dangerous. The dosage has to be given in a calculated and right amount.” In a desperate attempt to stretch their meagre resources, some parents are inadvertently putting their children at grave risk. For a child with Type 1 diabetes, even a slight miscalculation in insulin dosage can lead to severe complications, including diabetic ketoacidosis – a life-threatening condition where the body produces high levels of blood acids.For years, an affected parents’ based NGO, drawing crucial support from the People to People Health Foundation (PPHF), was a lifeline, supporting over 400 families. When PPHF withdrew its support last year, a vacuum was created, leaving hundreds of children vulnerable.Now, the primary support comes from a self-help group formed by the parents themselves: the ACT 1 Association for Children with Type 1 Diabetes. Eish Bajaj, President of ACT 1, said, “We provide insulin, glucometers, test strips, and needles to the economically deprived families. However, after the People to People Health Foundation withdrew support last year, we are not able to help 100 other children.” While ACT 1 valiantly assists 300 children, the remaining 100 face an uncertain and perilous future.PGI has a record of 2,500 registered patients with Type 1 diabetes over the past 21 years. Only 400 are on active follow-up. The rest, unable to sustain the lifelong treatment, simply disappear from the system, a decision that can be fatal.Prof Dayal said, “In children with Type 1, there is no insulin in the body. In the absence of insulin injection, there is a possibility of death within 24 to 48 hours. Children can go into ketoacidosis—which is life-threatening.” MSID:: 122957165 413 |