ALL NEW DELHI HOSPITALS ALLOWED TO INCREASE BEDS #dengue

All hospitals/nursing homes allowed to increase beds strength by 10-20% for three months to be prepared to deal with Dengue cases

· Increased beds will only be used for admitting fever & Dengue patients

· No hospital/nursing home will deny admission to fever & Dengue patients

· Charges for Dengue tests already capped for all private labs

· Sale of platelet restricting drugs like Aspirin, Ibuprofen and Diclofenac to be restricted during possible Dengue season

· Health department gears up to keep more than 300 fever clinics ready

Following directions from the Deputy Chief Minister Mr Manish Sisodia, the Directorate General of Health Services, Government of Delhi, has allowed all hospitals and nursing homes (including private) to increase their bed strength upto 10 to 20 per cent for a period of three months, as part of the preparation to effectively deal with Dengue cases, if the need arises.

Hospitals and nursing homes will get this permission with the condition that these beds will be used only for admitting fever and Dengue patients.

The order further states that no hospital and nursing home will deny treatment or admission to any patient suffering from Dengue.

A dedicated Dengue control cell is already functioning at the Directorate General of Health Services to conduct dengue-related measures.

To keep Dengue treatment affordable, the government has put a ceiling price on NSI Ag (Elisa based) and Elisa MAC tests at Rs 600 and for platelet count at Rs 50. Any private hospital or lab which charges more than the fixed ceiling price for dengue testing and platelet count will face action.

The mohalla clinics set up by the government too have been prepared to deal with Dengue cases. The government aims to increase the number of dedicated fever clinics from 55 last year to 355 fever clinics this year. All hospitals have been advised to have “fever corners” which will function at all hours. The medical staff and paramedical staff at these clinics have been sensitised about prevention and treatment of dengue.

To tackle Dengue, the government has decided to restrict the sale of drugs like Aspirin, Ibuprofen and Diclofenac group of medicines which cause destruction of platelets in human blood. These will now be sold strictly against prescription by a registered medical practitioner.

The Delhi Government held a series of workshops at the Delhi Secretariat to sensitise doctors about Dengue. The last workshop was held on July 27, 2016.

Delhi government has stressed that emphasis should be on prevention of Dengue by controlling the mosquito breeding since majority of the mosquito breeding takes place in the fresh water collected in the plastic containers, broken bottles, dabbas, plastic overhead water tanks, cement tanks, water coolers, tyres, flower pots, trash etc.

Students of government/private schools and colleges will be roped in to spread awareness about steps for prevention of Dengue.