N. Raghuraman's column: Lack of SOPs is the weakness of most of us

LUCKNOW: A couple was killed in a massive explosion at a firecracker factory in Behta village in Gudamba area of Lucknow on Sunday afternoon, police said. At least five others were injured, two of them with 70% burns. The explosion was so massive that five nearby buildings collapsed, two of which turned into rubble. The sound of the explosion was heard up to two km. Is it rocket science for the municipality and neighbours to find a firecracker factory operating in a residential colony? Not at all. But our attitude is 'nothing will happen'. Due to this carelessness, there are big reports in the newspapers that 'explosion due to wrong management' and 'walls shook, the streets collapsed in seconds'. Similarly, a seven-year study across 54 private and government hospitals and 200 ICUs in India found that mismanagement of intravenous tubes, called central lines, led to more than 8,600 serious blood transfusions. These are small tubes that are inserted into the large veins of the neck, chest and groin to deliver medicines, fluids and nutrition into the blood. The study, published in the Lancet, states that newborns are at the highest risk due to this infection. At least 40% of patients with Central Line infection die within two weeks. The rate of infection is: 8.83 Central Line infections in 1000 Central Line days. That is, 1 transition every 9 thousand days of central line use. How did these infections reach hospital beds? The two major reasons cited in the study are contaminated hands, equipment and medicines. Interestingly, about 87 per cent of the samples infected with Acinetobacter baumannii bacteria were resistant to even the most potent antibiotic. This bacteria is found in soil and water and can survive for a long time in hospital environments. Now my question is, how much do we 'sterilize' our hands, medicines and equipment before entering the disinfected environment? The third area is food management. While food management practices may vary, there is evidence of massive problems in India. These problems cause a large number of foodborne illnesses and deaths. These include poor sanitation, lack of staff training, inadequate infrastructure and inadequate functioning of food safety authorities. Studies at food outlets have shown disappointing results. A 2021 study reported that there are about 100 million outbreaks of foodborne illnesses in India every year. Researchers estimate that if the current standards continue, this figure could reach 150 million by 2030. Only a small population of India eats in star-rated hotels, where food management is given priority. A large population eats at small and unorganized sector shops. I have seen many times that some policemen and some officers take bribe from these shops all over the country, but not a single officer checks their food safety. On the other hand, there are examples of large public kitchens such as temples, where a high level of hygiene and food safety is adopted while making offerings to the Lord. They are a positive example of the opposite of food management problems. What do these examples tell us? There is no dearth of laws in the country. Established guidelines exist for basic civic amenities, health and services providers and those involved in the hospitality business. But the biggest concern is the enforcement and enforcement within and by the monitoring agencies. The funda is that the absence of a standard operating procedure (SOP) can shake the foundations of any type of business. This SOP needs to be adopted by business owners and local bodies in the larger interest of society.