Martin F.R.
Rajiv Gandhi
Govt.General Hospital turns into TB Specialized center keeping in view
increasing pressure on healthcare infrastructure in the city.
Photo credit-Martin
F.R.
Chennai Central :TB cases
have been on exponential rise which has created a situation of haywire in the
existing govt.medical facilities across the city, which are unable to handle
patients due to lack of beds and inpatient facilities which has led to a little
husky dory situation in handling the matter directly raising fingers on
preparedness of public hospitals in tackling such issues along with State
authorities who are risking the health of poor citizens who cannot afford
private treatment.
As per the latest reports
of WHO, which shows Mumbai & Chennai are hotspots for increasing TB Cases
due to several reasons be it public sanitation and health facilities, to
excessive crowded public places a cause for easily contrascepting &
transmitting of TB bacteria especially in such a humid climate causing nearly
85% population to have incurred latent TB maximum population across the country
especially metro cities like Chennai, Mumbai and Kolkata etc.
As,no.of cases increases
and other hospital are unable look into cases like Stanley and Govt.TB
Institute which are facing lack of bed facilities for taking in patients on
long-term basis for constant contained treatment and the other being just an TB
research Hospital having space to take in only advanced stage Pulmonary &
Extra Pulmonary TB Patients ,not regular patients.
For easing out this
bureaucratic and logical blocks,RGG General Hospital has kicked in itself to
help out ease the situation by an considerate effort of promulgating certain
sections of its Pulmonary Division & Chronic Diseases Department to admit
cases of TB and also slotted Inpatient Division by allocating 100 beds for
emergency cases too.
Merely solving this
current fiasco is not going to solve the persisting pathetic public healthcare
in the city and in around Chennai central, taking this into account the whole
hospital management have charted out a policy towards mission of fighting this
long going menace and have started campaigns through intern assisted programs
in nearby and also some far fledged private and govt.hospitals &
schools/colleges by creating awareness and setting up camps.
Also, they have started
identifying the latent TB patients who although doesn't show symptoms and face
any medical reactions, but are hit list to get TB in future ,which increase
their probability of contracting a full blown Active TB,So,taking extra pain
they have started this work at faster pace ,though working in the background.
As, this latent TB
population is massive ,they are targeting more specifically the places like
slums and locations with poor state of basic sanitary affairs on ground, and
are marking them as high riskier zones and have started providing medicines for
free for BPL card holders and others on subsidised rates to cure them not
forcefully but through counseling of its need and future threats of contracting
much more severe form of active TB and also making them aware of what kind of
treatment is given to them by also engaging local healthcare experts and NGO
activists.
Advising and training the
Primary healthcare doctors working in smaller healthcare units is also been one
of their aims, especially making them aware and catching the symptoms at
earlier stages itself as due to changing variations of TB Bacteria it becomes
hard to detect and later develop into more of a complex form of TB which
becomes nearly hard to be cured and considered equal to treating Cancer.
Dr.Vasudharan , Pulmonary
Medicine Expert working in both Stanley & RGG General Hospital states that
the issue of Latent TB is quite concerning when just a decade before it's
treatment was very difficult as all the tablets of its treating regimen probably were either not discovered or were
not in production in market, and these medicines also used to be quite costly
such the government was not also able to provide them ,but after all anomalies
have cease to exist where medicines are given yet we are not able to eradicate
TB in our country like we eradicated polio nearly 3 decades ago.But,the
policies have to come up from higher authorities, although we are doctors, we
don't have any role healthcare policies either in state or centre. It’s the
government that has to launch prolific well planned & grounded health care
policies specifically targeting such Chronic diseases, as the situation can get
worse anytime and go out of control think it's god’s grace that still the rate
of Latent TB converting into active TB is low, but seeing dripping immunity
& increasing pollution level, i think this dream run can at anytime, so
it’s high time that we act in whatever we can then only we can succeed in
tackling such Chronic diseases. We are doing our bit, if other hospitals take
it up as serious issue, that day is not far when our country or state at least
becomes TB free. Let’s hope for the good.
Prema latha, a nurse
working in general ward of TB patients says,"I think it's a holy cause
that we have taken up it up in a holistic manner, although risk is there but we
are taking all proper precautions. Govt.Hospitals are usually not prone to
taking campaigns as such as we don't have corporate funding, yet somehow the
Hospital authorities have managed it in one or other way which is highly
commendable. We nurses also are putting extra hours, although it’s quite
difficult for us working out of schedules, but when situation demands we can't
complaint. And of course, but when it comes to TB,where Medicine Compliance is
of utmost importance ,the role of nurses become more significant.So,we need to
be more vigilant”.
Through hospital sources,
we came to know that nearly 1.63 lakh latent TB patients have been identified
and still counting especially all of them of high probability of contracting
active TB and are been treated under various existing government schemes in
order of priority.100 beds are fully occupied for Inpatient Division of Chronic
cases and nearly 1667 patients are been treated as outpatients since July of
this year.
Silva rehman,a school
student's father says ," my son was earlier admitted in govt.stanley
hospital, but as there was no beds available, for nearly 1 week my son had to
sleep on floor, such as were state of affairs, quite horrible & scary, but
suddenly hospital authorities shifted him to RGG hospital where a ward was sanctioned for his
treatment, we were relieved at last, god is there, he heard our voices of sheer
fear, at he is out of danger and been treated well and shall be discharged in a
week or 2 for systematic home treatment thereafter think TB is such a Grave
disease that can happen to anyone, so its eradication is necessary. When I see
my son losing weight like in kgs in a day or day it still terrifies me. I
support the effort of the Hospital as well as future programs regarding its
eradication".
TB is an air borne
disease which needs collective effort to treat it in a realistic manner, so
that the Effort is commendable but let's make sure it's not just not taken for
the sake of just sudden increase in TB cases as well as public criticism that
goes on, but as a long term stiff policy. If this be the stance, TB free India
is not far dream to achieve, it can become a reality soon.
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