GMC Jammu gets 48 more ventilators

Irfan Tramboo
Srinagar, Feb, 16: In a move to upgrade the patient care at Government Medical College (GMC), Jammu, the Department of Health and Medical Education (H&ME) has supplied at least 48 ventilators to the GMC and are set to be made operational within a week.
Financial Commissioner Health Atul Dulloo said that all the 48 ventilators will be installed at the GMC Jammu where a new Intensive Care Unit (ICU) has been constructed after the Cardiology Department was shifted to the Super Specialty hospital.
He said under JKIDFC projects (languishing projects), Rs 50 crores were sanctioned for high-end equipment including much-needed ventilators for Government Medical College Jammu. He said that the money has been released in order to take up the projects which were languishing, including the work on the Eye Bank along with several other works.
Principal, GMC Jammu Dr Sunanda Raina told Excelsior that the already existing Critical Care Unit has been removed and additional blocks of Medical, Surgical and Orthopaedic ICUs will be added to it.
“All the newly procured ventilators will be used solely at GMC Jammu, where the additional blocks have been added, moreover, we have expanded the already existing CCU after the Cardiology Department was shifted to Super Speciality Hospital,” she said.
She said that the operationalizing all the ventilators at the hospital is surely going to help in making the patient care even more effective and will help in dealing effectively with the critical cases that are admitted to the hospital.
The present strength of ventilators at GMC, Jammu is 24, with new 48 ventilators; the strength has gone to 72 ventilators. The new ventilators will also be put to use at the High Dependency Unit (HDU) at the hospital.