All jawans advised to keep Sorbitrate and Disprin handy
Faced with an alarming trend of casualties due to cardiac arrests, the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) has now decided to counter the new adversary with an advisory for keeping life savings pills handy on a 24X7 basis with each and every personnel of the force.
Amid the “unacceptable” number of deaths due to heart attacks in the world’s biggest paramilitary, the medical branch of the CRPF has directed all the formations across the country that all personnel under their command will carry two tablets of Disprin (300 mg) and four tablets of Sorbitrate (5 mg) in their purse/pocket (two doses that can be used on two occasions) to mitigate any possible casualty from cardiac failure.
Only one tablet of Disprin (aspirin) to be chewed immediately when it appears a case of heart attack and one tablet Sorbitrate (sorbitol) be put under the tongue which will be dissolved in the mouth on its own. One tablet of Sorbitrate can be repeated after 10 minutes, said the fresh guideline for prevention of deaths due to heart attacks. The move comes as 10 personnel died in July alone due to heart attacks.
While Disprin helps prevent blood coagulation, Sorbitrate helps in relaxing congested blood vessels and the combination of these two medicines constitutes early prevention measure for containing cardiac failure by ensuring sufficient supply of blood to the heart, according to doctors.
After administering Sorbitrate, the patient should be kept in lying position. Symptoms of heart attacks are chest pain in the middle of chest or pain in left side of neck/jaw. All types of pain associated with perspiration and generally very serious in nature but sometimes can be mild or feeling of discomfort or compression of chest. Sometimes symptoms are similar to indigestion associated with gas formation.
Commandant and Medical officers of the unit will ensure procurement of these medicines in sufficient quantity to meet the requirement of each and every personnel of the unit/institution on top priority basis.
Small sized zipped plastic pouch containing these tablets in the pouch is always to be kept in purse/pocket with the personnel. One pouch be issued to each and every personnel of unit /institution, says the advisory issued by the Medical branch of the force.
For the personnel of Directorate here, CMO In charge, DG Staff camp hospital will arrange such pouches of medicines and distribute to all ranks of directorate.
“These instructions to be percolated up to the last/smallest formation/out post of the force to spread awareness among all the personnel. Compliance report by all units, Group Centre, Sector or other Headquarter regarding issue of medicines be submitted to Medical Directorate by September 20, 2019. For information and strict compliance please,” reads the letter (dated September 3, 2019) titled “Regarding death due to heart attack and prevention” by Inspector General/Director Medical of the CRPF.
“Of late it is noticed that death cases in the force due to heart attack are increasing alarmingly. We are losing precious lives due to heart attack almost regularly. Total death during the month of July, 2019 is found 10 which is not acceptable at all. Force cannot afford losing such large number of trained manpower for a preventable cause of death. Deaths due to heart attack are preventable,” the IG medical said in the latest advisory.
“It is not predictable that who is likely to have a heart attack. Hence, it is decided that each and every personnel of the force will keep 2 tablets of Disprin 300 mg and 4 tablets of Sorbitrate 5 mg in their purse/pocket,” reads the advisory.
The move comes amid the alarming number of deaths due to the disease in July. Diseases like heart attacks, depression and other ailments have killed 16 times more personnel of the CRPF than casualties in anti-Maoist or counter-terror operations since 2016. According to official data, as many as 1,294 CRPF troops died due to heart attack, depression, suicides, and other reasons between January 1, 2016 and July 30, 2018. In the corresponding period, only 85 paramilitary personnel were killed in encounter with the Maoists, CRPF officials said.
A survey conducted by the CRPF earlier had underscored continuous deployment in stressful working conditions with irregular eating/sleep cycles, long working without even weekly offs and prolonged separation from families and domestic issues were among the major reasons for heart attacks, they said, adding inadequate medical facilities further compounded the problem.
To counter the problem, the survey had recommended monitoring mechanisms like annual medical check-ups of the personnel and preventive measures like yoga and regular counseling to keep their health condition in check.
The CRPF is the designated force for anti-terrorist operations, anti-insurgency and counter Naxalism measures and is further stretched due to deployments in law and order situations across the country. While policies have been formed to post the personnel to soft operation areas or training after three years of posting in hard areas but the rule is not often followed strictly due to faulty implementation of transfer policy, sources in the CRPF said.
To boost the morale of the force, the Union Home Ministry has sanctioned a number of measures like special allowances/incentives to personnel deployed in anti-Naxal operations and upgradation of basic amenities like proper accommodation and medical facilities.
