Dengue: TN Health Minister tours 3 districts

The tour was to ensure that the hospitals were well-equipped to handle emergencies and had adequate staff and facilities. He began his tour from Pudukkottai at 10 am. After inspecting the government hospital there, he distributed ‘Nilavembu decotion’ and pamphlets containing information about prevention and treatment of dengue to the public In the afternoon, he reached Thanjavur and flagged off a dengue awareness rally there. Later, he visited the Thanjavur Peravurani Kamarajar Government Hospital. He along with the Collector A Annadurai inspected and enquired about the facilities available in the fever ward. The minister along with other officials distributed the herbal concoction, Nilavembu Kudineer, for prevention of the fever.

The minister said, the government has directed all the private hospitals to refer patients to the tertiary GHs if the platelet count of the dengue patient has come down below 15,000. “For treatment of dengue shock syndrome, Rs. 25,000 to Rs. 1 lakh has been allotted under the Chief Minister’s Comprehensive Health Insurance Scheme,” informed the minister.

He reached Tiruchy by 4 pm and inspected some of the government hospitals there. He said, “As many as 5,000 dengue cases are being treated in the state. Following the increasing fever and dengue outbreak in several districts, the health department has taken blood samples from thirteen districts and sent them to Chennai for analysis. The results clearly indicate that the outbreak was caused by the ‘Typhoon virus.’ This is said to be harmless. We are still awaiting result of the blood samples sent from Erode.” Throughout his tour, the minister asked the public to take treatment in government hospitals if they are diagnosed with fever. Since many doctors are specially debuted for handling fever cases and also the hospitals are fully equipped the treatment would be given on right time, he assured. He inspected some of the preventive measures that were undertaken by the city corporation to prevent dengue.

In all the three districts, he met patients suffering from dengue, inspected fever wards at Government Hospitals, visited schools and mobile hospitals.

Besides inspections, experts on dengue from the Institute of Child Health and Children’s Hospital, Egmore, are at Salem to coordinate the treatment and prevention of the fever in Salem – from where a number of cases were being reported.

We have been asked to oversee arrangements made and clarify doubts, if any, on methods to bring down the fever cases. We have also been holding discussions with teams here on what they wouold do to help, the patients here, and specific treatments to be given to the patients,” said ICH doctor Dr Srinivasan, from Salem.

It may be noted that the state has recorded almost 6000 confirmed dengue fever cases this year.

COIMBATORE: After taking appropriate preventive measures, dengue cases have come down in the last one week here. The district, which witnessed 21 dengue deaths in the last two months, has not reported any casualties in the last one week, Government hospital sources said. Stating that about 50 patients are undergoing treatment for dengue, they said that even the incident of other types of fever have also come down during the period. Meanwhile, a 65-year old woman was admitted to the hospital with the symptoms of swine flu and she tested positive for it.