Cuttack, Sept. 5: Detection of two swine flu cases in the state has forced government health officials to set up a special isolation ward at SCB Medi cal College and Hospital in Cuttack.
Official sources said efforts had already been initiated to set up a quarantine ward on the second floor of the trauma care centre and casualty department. It will start operating by Friday.
The ward will have 21 beds, a six-bed quarantine section and five beds at the intensive care unit with ventilator facilities for critical H1N1 patients.
A dedicated team consisting of doctors, including the head of pulmonary medicine and anaesthesia will be in charge of the special swine flu ward and intensive care unit.
Besides this, two doctors will be deployed round-the-clock and 12 nurses and 14 group d staff will also be posted to take care of the patients at the special ward. District collector and high court-appointed advocates’ committee took stock of the infrastructure needed for the special ward last evening following the inordinate delay in setting up of the isolation ward.
A committee consisting of officials of SCB hospital, district administration and chief district medical officer has been constituted to start measures to ensure that arrangements are made to deal with possible outbreak of swine flu and dengue.
“We had taken stock of the infrastructure at SCB hospital, which will be the referral unit for swine flu and dengue cases. Efforts have been started to set up special wards to tackle such situations,” said district collector Girish S.N.
Girish said, apart from swine flu, a ward for dengue patients would also be set up with 30 beds from Friday. So far, SCB hospital has dealt with 45 dengue patients from various parts of the state. SCB officials said earlier, the special ward was set up on the first floor of the old casualty department soon after the state witnessed swine flu outbreak for the first time in 2009.
The H1N1 virus had claimed 32 lives in the state in 2010. No cases were detected last year. However, the special quarantine ward, which was functioning from the old casualty department, was closed after the casualty ward was shifted to the emergency and trauma care building in 2011.
