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View all search resultsDeath of a four-year-old due to extreme worm infection sparks online outrage
Over the following days, hundreds of live roundworms, collectively weighing around one kilogram, were expelled from her body, with some measuring up to 15 centimeters in length. Despite intensive care in the hospital’s Pediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU), Raya passed away nine days later.
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Earthworms (Shutterstock/Nikolay Antonov)
T
he death of a four-year-old girl in Cianaga Village, Sukabumi Regency, West Java, due to a severe roundworm infection has triggered widespread backlash online, with netizens criticizing the government's failure to ensure equitable healthcare access and effective disease prevention for low-income communities.
Four-year-old Raya passed away on July 22, but her heartbreaking story only recently gained widespread attention after Rumah Teduh, a local philanthropic organization that supported her medical treatment, shared her journey online.
The post, which quickly went viral, revealed the extreme conditions Raya faced before her death and the volunteers’ failed attempts to secure coverage under the national health insurance program (JKN), despite multiple appeals to local health and social service agencies.
According to Rumah Teduh, Raya was taken to Syamsuddin Regional General Hospital in Sukabumi on July 13 in an unconscious state. At the time, she was showing symptoms such as fever, coughing and difficulty breathing.
Read also: Worm-contaminated canned sardines circulating in five regencies, city: Report
Initially, medical personnel suspected a complication from tuberculosis, as her father is currently undergoing treatment for the disease. However, not long after being admitted, a live worm emerged from her nose.
Over the following days, hundreds of live roundworms, collectively weighing around one kilogram, were expelled from her body, with some measuring up to 15 centimeters in length. Despite intensive care in the hospital’s Pediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU), Raya passed away nine days later.
