The in-charge of the health post, health assistant Ranjan Rawat, assistant health worker Ganga Ram Acharya, and auxiliary nurse midwife Harikala Shahi were all on leave. Meanwhile, assistant health worker Krishna Bahadur Rokaya and auxiliary nurse midwife Arati Yadav were away either on deputation or training, according to Sushmita's uncle Durga Lal Jaisi.
Sushmita's health condition worsened after returning home from the local health facility. She breathed her last a week later on April 1.
"We lost our daughter due to lack of treatment," said Durga Lal.
The disease that claimed Sushmita's life had also affected around 50 students of her school at the same time.
Afflicted with an unknown disease, many of them could not sit for their ongoing examinations. The school had to cancel the exams following the absence of large number of the students.
The students were later rushed to health posts where there was no one except the office assistant. The health workers came back at the health post only after a week of the death of the first patient.
Soon the disease outbreak turned into an epidemic, spreading across six VDCs of Jajarkot, including Painka, Achharni and Talegaun, claiming a total of 24 lives till Sunday, and infecting hundreds of locals so far.
Only after 10 days, AHW Krishna Bahadur Rokaya and ANMs Hari Kala Shahi and Ram Maya Giri came back to affected Achharni but In-charge Punjan Rawat and ANM Arati Yadav and AHW Ganga Ram Acharya have not yet returned to their work station.
Such absenteeism among health workers was prevalent not only in Achharni VDC. AHW Pemba Dorje Sherpa and ANM Bishnu Maya Thokar of the health post at Talegaun took more than a week since the outbreak was first reported to return to their jobs.
Similar is the case with the worst hit Painka VDC, where the highest number of locals lost their lives, according to Jit Bahadur Rokaya, a local.
Locals complain that although most health posts in Jajarkot have adequate staff, the health workers hardly stay at their workplaces as they are mostly away on leave or deputation. As the authorities don't take action against such health workers, it has invited such a situation, they argued.
Meanwhile, Dr Rajendra Pant, chief of Mid-Regional Health Directorate, said that no health workers would be allowed to stay on deputation with an immediate effect.
Although he had issued a letter addressing the health workers to get back to their workplaces within 24 hours, many have yet to comply with the instruction.
It is learnt that massive absenteeism of health workers and shortage of medicines both have led to the current catastrophe in the district.
The government authorities, including District Health Office (DHO), Jajarkot, began to pay attention to the outbreak only after 11 people died. Despite claims from the authorities that they have the situation under control, the epidemic is far from contained.
Keshav Jung Shah, a civil society leader, said that local authorities should reach door to door in the affected areas to provide treatment
services and medicines to rein in the spread of the disease.
"Just running a camp for two days in the villages will not help," said he.
The seasonal flu that has gripped Jajarkot district for the last three weeks claiming a death toll of 24, has most likely to spread to neighbouring Rukum district. The local administration of Rukum has declared a high alert in the areas adjoining Jajarkot district.
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