Over 600 bedded facility for COVID-19 patients
Excelsior Correspondent
Srinagar Mar 6: Jammu and Kashmir Government is mulling to start Coronavirus testing facilities in Srinagar and Jammu soon and has kept over 600 beds ready for dealing with patients with COVID-19 that has infected over one lakh people and claimed 3000 lives globally.
A senior official said that Government is mulling testing facilities for coronavirus at Jammu and Srinagar. He said that the Central Government is ready to provide facilities for these two testing centres which are likely to be started soon.
The official said that at Government Medical College Srinagar there is already a swine flu lab with bio safety level 3 facility and it can be converted into Coronavirus testing lab. In GMC Jammu such a laboratory is being set up in 20 days.
Government is also planning to convert Swine flu testing laboratory at SKIMS Soura into Coronavirus testing laboratory.
In the meantime, Government has hired a hotel in Nishat area of Srinagar which is in secluded area and can be converted into 70 bedded isolation facility where patients with Coronavirus can be kept in case of any exigency.
Similarly Yatri Niwas Bhagwati Nagar Jammu has been kept ready in case of exigency where 200 such patients can be accommodated.
In Kashmir, Government has kept isolation facilities with 25 bedded at Ompora hospital in district Budgam, 50 in Chhanpora hospital in Srinagar, 20 in Sanat nagar Maternity hospital Srinagar, 18 in GMC Srinagar, 20 in SKIMS Soura, 10 in SKIMS Bemina besides 5-8 bedded facility at each district hospital in the Valley.
And in Jammu, there are 33 bedded isolation facility at GMC Jammu, 30 bedded at Directorate of Health Services in Jammu, 50 bedded facility at PHC Bishnah besides 5-8 bedded facility at each district hospitals across Jammu.
In the meantime, 7 people with travel history of Coronavirus hit countries and respiratory ailments are admitted in SKIMS Soura and GMC Jammu. Five of them are admitted to SKIMS Soura and two in GMC Jammu. One of them has tested negative and test results of six patients are awaited. However, doctors attending them said that they are recovering.
Nodal Officer, Coronavirus control Jammu and Kashmir, Dr. Shafqat Khan said at least 6500 people have been screened in last two days in Jammu and Kashmir, adding that 2800 were screened only in Jammu.
He said that these people were screened at Lower Munda, Lakhanpur, Jammu and Srinagar airports. He added that Railway Station Jammu has established help desk where people with travel history of Coronavirus hit countries are asked for self-reporting.
In the meantime, Srinagar administration today reached out to the managements of major mosques and shrines in the district as part of its efforts to spread awareness about precautions that ought to be followed to prevent spread of the novel coronavirus.
The managing committees of major mosques and shrines were invited to a meeting where senior health department officials were also present and sensitised to the need to follow all precautions in order to prevent spread of the pathogen.
The aim of the meeting was also to involve mosques – considering their deep reach in their societies – in efforts of the administration to spread the awareness among the masses about the importance of following relevant precautions.
Regional Director Health & Family Welfare Dr Shazia Wafai who was also present in the meeting briefed the mosque committee members about specific precautions in particular stressing the importance of maintaining high standards of personal and collective hygiene.
She said the pathogen has been seen to have strong transmission capabilities and stressed the importance of following all precautions.
The committee members were also informed about the Health department’s preparedness surrounding the matter during the meeting.
Deputy Commissioner Srinagar Dr Shahid Iqbal Choudhary while speaking on the occasion urged all mosques in the district to play their important role both in terms of following precautions and helping the administration in preventing its spread in Srinagar.
He said knowledge material about the disease will be distributed amongst all mosques in the district in efforts to raise awareness about precautions required to prevent its spread.
Dr Shahid assured that the administration at levels is taking all measures to prevent the spread of the virus in J&K and urged the general public to support it in its efforts.
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