The grueling ordeal endured by an elderly man in Taitung who was seeking medical treatment after he was bitten by a venomous snake demonstrated the risks associated with the lack of snake antivenom in the rural areas of the east coast.
The 70-year-old man surnamed Pan (潘), who lives in Taitung County’s Daren Township (達仁), was taking a shower in his house on the evening of July 13 when he was bitten on his right leg by a cobra, which had holed up in the bathroom.
Members of his family rushed him to the township health center.
However, there was no doctor to administer treatment or give him an antivenom injection as it was after office hours.
They then drove to the adjacent Dawu Township (大武), which has an emergency medical station. However, the medics on duty told them that no cobra antivenom was available.
The family then rushed Pan to Taimali Township (太麻里), but the main clinic there also lacked the relevant treatment.
Pan finally got his needed medical treatment at the Mackay Memorial Hospital in Taitung.
Altogether, Pan and his family had traveled for about two hours over a distance of about 70km.
At Mackay Memorial, Pan received the cobra antivenom injection, but the snakebite on his leg had become infected and was in deteriorating condition.
Necrotizing fasciitis set in around the wound, with the flesh-eating bacterial syndrome destroying his skin and muscles.
He was transferred to Hualien Buddhist Tzu Chi General Hospital, where he underwent cleanup surgery and recovery treatment.
Pa Te-hsiung (巴德雄), head of Daren Township Public Health Center, said the unfortunate outcome happened because no doctor was available after office hours and the station in Dawu did not have cobra antivenom, so the bite victim encountered delays in getting treatment.
The Dawu medical station said it has antivenom in stock only for what it termed the major poisonous snakes of the nation:bamboo viper, Taiwanese brown spotted pit viper, hundred-pace pit viper and the chain snake, or Russell’s viper, while lacking cobra antivenom.
According to Lu Tao-yang (盧道揚), director of the Taitung County Public Health Bureau, it is quite costly to have a complete stock of various antivenom, which have expiration dates.
“Local health centers’ antivenom stocks depend on snakebite statistics and compiled reports, with proper planning for the treatment’s geographic distribution. Since quantities of antivenom are limited, not all health centers have a complete stock of snakebite treatments,” Lu said.
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