Bhubaneswar, April 28: Health care facilities in the city are gearing up to tackle cases of sunstroke and dehydration with the maximum day temperature having crossed the 40°C mark recently.

Capital Hospital, the biggest government health hub here, has set up a special one-room air-conditioned ward that can accommodate 10 patients. The hospital administration has also stocked up on ORS, glucose and other relevant medication.

"We have opened the ward near the disaster preparedness unit. Cool water will also be available to patients this time. Patients can be treated at the casualty and shifted to the ward if necessary," said superintendent Manoranjan Dash.

The corporation-managed Municipal Hospital has also set up a special ward for patients of heat-related ailments. Its air-conditioned cabin can accommodate five patients.

"We have opened a dedicated cabin to treat people affected by heat-related ailments. We have put up notices to create awareness about the measures they can take to stay safe in these conditions and stocked relevant medicines," said mayor Ananta Narayan Jena.

Though the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) has not opened a special ward, its administrators claimed the hospital was equipped to treat such patients.

An AIIMS administrator told The Telegraph that of the hospital's 500 beds, around 300 usually remain occupied at a given time. Around 200 beds are usually available and this number was more than enough to accommodate patients affected by the heat.

"We have enough beds to accommodate patients suffering from dehydration and we have enough doctors. A patient may first come to the casualty ward and if it is found that he or she has sunstroke, the person will be admitted to the designated ward," said the administrator. He advised people to stay indoors as much as possible and drink lots of water.

Private hospitals are also taking steps to deal with sunstroke or dehydration patients.

"Call an ambulance if you think you or someone else has heat stroke. Seek urgent medical attention if heat exhaustion symptoms don't improve within 30 minutes of applying first aid. Children and elderly are more prone to heat stroke. They should be given special attention," said Sobhan Rath, a private medical practitioner.