Tue Mar 25 15:06:16 UTC 2025: ## Madurai Health Center’s Unsafe Infrastructure Endangers Pregnant Women
**Madurai, March 25, 2025** – Pregnant women seeking antenatal care (ANC) at the Y. Othakadai Primary Health Centre (PHC) in Madurai district are facing significant risks due to the facility’s unsafe infrastructure. The steep staircase, a mandatory route for accessing essential services, poses a serious threat to both mothers and their unborn children.
The PHC, serving approximately 45,000 people, is severely understaffed, with only one doctor and two nurses on duty, despite a need for two doctors and four. This understaffing, coupled with a vacant doctor and nurse post, leaves the medical college student deputized to help overwhelmed. The situation is further exacerbated by the building’s design, which forces pregnant women to climb steep stairs for check-ups, testing, and medication. Women report removing their slippers to prevent falls on the steep steps. Overcrowding frequently leaves them sitting on the stairs waiting for their appointments.
Health activist A. Veronica Mary condemned the situation, highlighting that National Health Mission norms prohibit pregnant women from climbing stairs during check-ups. She criticized the inadequate doctor-patient ratio, especially during the weekly ANC clinic, which sees over 70 pregnant women. A senior health official acknowledged the infrastructural deficiencies, citing a lack of space as the reason for the inability to relocate or expand the facility. The official stated that the current building, surrounded by other establishments, limits expansion options. The official expressed hope that a new location would eventually allow for improved facilities. The PHC serves approximately 700 pregnant women annually and 45,000 outpatients.
First Piper 