Thursday, 02 MAY 2024 | PNS | DEHRADUN
The medical superintendent of Government Doon Medical College (GDMC) hospital, Dr Dhananjay Dobhal said that the hospital is fully prepared to handle the cases of dengue that usually affect people during summer and monsoon seasons. Around this time every year, the hospital administration gears up to take on dengue cases that usually appear in June and July. Considering this, the hospital administration has set up a special 20-bed ward for dengue patients and has arranged oxygen supply to ensure that the patients do not suffer.
To recall, the State health secretary R Rajesh Kumar issued dengue guidelines to all the district magistrates and chief medical officers of the State a few days ago, directing them to be on their guard and take steps in advance to keep away the vector-borne disease.
Dobhal further said that they are also setting up an additional 10-bed ICU isolation ward for those dengue-afflicted people whose conditions show signs of severity. “In this ICU isolation ward, apart from an oxygen supply, a ventilator facility will also be provided to the admitted patients,” he said and added that they would direct the municipal corporation to conduct fogging in the hospital premises once monsoon arrives.
“During monsoon, use of ACs will be prohibited, especially in the dengue wards, as the extracted water from it can indirectly cause spike in dengue cases,” he said and added: “Plus, the administration will ensure that proper ventilation and hygiene are maintained to make it easier to treat the dengue patients.”
Asked about recent cases, Dobhal said, “The hospital has been continuously conducting tests for dengue. Two types of dengue testing are done in the hospital – dengue serology and dengue ELISA. A positive serology test in a patient indicates suspected symptoms of dengue while a positive ELISA test confirms dengue present in patients. So far, there is only one suspected case of serology and the individual is currently under treatment at the hospital.”
He further emphasised on taking early precautions to keep dengue at bay: removing stagnant water from the surroundings, wearing full-sleeve clothing and using anti-mosquito body spray.
