Feverish child given anti-rabies shot at Odisha’s Bonai hospital; accused doctor explains his own logic

PUBLISHED: 31 Jul 2025, 10:59 AM IST
LAST UPDATE: 31 Jul 2025, 10:59 AM IST

In a serious case of medical negligence, a doctor at Bonai Sub-Divisional Hospital in Odisha allegedly administered a dog bite injection to a child who was brought in for fever. 

The incident came to light after a woman from Jagannathpur area under Bonai alleged that her daughter was wrongly given an anti-rabies vaccine, raising questions over the hospital’s handling of prescriptions.

As per the allegation, the woman had brought her child to the hospital after she developed a fever. Following examination, the paediatric doctor, Dr Liki Chand Mahapatra, issued a prescription for medication. However, when the prescription was shown at the hospital’s pharmacy, the staff reportedly asked whether the child was bitten by a dog. This unexpected question made the mother suspicious.

Prescription Allegedly Changed

Upon confronting the doctor about the injection, the woman alleged that Dr Mahapatra changed the prescription and issued a different one. The family claims that this change further deepened their suspicion that an incorrect vaccine was given to the child.

Mother Shares Her Experience

“The doctor was already attending to another patient who had a dog bite. When I took my daughter for a diagnosis, they gave me a prescription. Later, at the government pharmacy, we were asked whether my daughter had been bitten by a dog, which we denied. Despite that, she was still given the injection. They should not have administered an anti-rabies vaccine if it wasn’t required. When we questioned the doctor, he told us it was a mistake on our part, but assured us there would be no side effects and advised us to continue the full course. However, my daughter’s fever has not gone down,” the child’s mother alleged.

Doctor Denies Allegation, Explains Medical Reasoning

The accused doctor, Dr Liki Chand Mahapatra, refuted the allegations. “It was part of routine immunisation, which is why I prescribed that injection. The child is still experiencing fever because she has chicken pox. I had treated her last night as well, and her condition is stable. The fever is recurring due to the chicken pox. The vaccination given was a ‘pre-exposure prophylaxis’, not ‘post-exposure prophylaxis’, as there are two types,” he clarified.