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Kozhikode govt hospital sees sharp decline in deliveries
Deliveries at the Government Hospital for Women and Children in Kozhikode have dropped sharply over five years, from 5,201 in 2020-21 to 2,238 in 2025-26, according to Health department data obtained through…
Deliveries at the Government Hospital for Women and Children in Kozhikode have dropped sharply over five years, from 5,201 in 2020-21 to 2,238 in 2025-26, according to Health department data obtained through an RTI query. The C-section rate, though declining in absolute numbers, remains well above the ideal range: in 2020-21, 2,472 of 5,201 births were via C-section, and in 2025-26, 851 of 2,238 were. The WHO suggests a population-level C-section rate of 10-15%, while the national average is 21.5%.
In-patient admissions also fell from 8,315 in 2020-21 to 4,838 in 2025-26, even as outpatient visits nearly doubled from 81,329 to 1,50,305 over the same period. Satheesh Parannur of the Pouravakasha Samrakshana Samithi, who filed the RTI, said some women may be avoiding admission for deliveries. He has urged the Health department to conduct a detailed inquiry into the decline in deliveries and in-patient numbers.
Indian Opinion Analysis
The data covers only one government hospital in Kozhikode city, but the trend mirrors a wider pattern across Keralam: rising private-sector preference for childbirth, even among poorer patients, partly due to perceived better facilities and shorter waiting times. C-section rates above the WHO threshold also raise questions about medical protocols in public hospitals, though the report does not name any specific cause. The next step is whether the Health department orders an inquiry, as demanded, and whether similar RTI data from other district hospitals confirm a state-wide shift.
Source: thehindu.com
This story was synthesised by AI from the source linked above.
