Mumbai’s Kasturba Hospital could become national centre to test coronavirus

The hospital has already sent a report of its available equipment and medical facilities for testing the virus to the Centre. It has a state-level testing facility to analyse samples such as HIV, E-coli and other viral infections.

The civic-run Kasturba Hospital in Chinchpokli might start testing samples for coronavirus from across India in its laboratory in order to ease the burden on Pune’s National Institute of Virology (NIV), which is currently the only testing centre analysing the virus in the country.

Kasturba Hospital in Mumbai (HT File)

The development comes in the wake of health officials from the Centre visiting the hospital this week. The officials recommended the hospital start testing samples for coronavirus if the infrastructure of its laboratory meets the parameters set by the Centre.

“The Central health department is planning to turn the laboratory of Kasturba Hospital into another national testing centre for coronavirus for faster processing of reports. They instructed us to submit the report on the medical facility, which was done on Friday,” said Dr Suresh Kakani, additional municipal commissioner (health), BMC. “It would take a week for us to get response from the Centre. If we get approval, we will be able to provide test reports faster.”

The hospital has already sent a report of its available equipment and medical facilities for testing the virus to the Centre. It has a state-level testing facility to analyse samples such as HIV, E-coli and other viral infections.

Currently, all samples in India are being sent to NIV. Till Thursday, the centre had received 49 samples from across the country.

‘Staff not given proper masks’

Meanwhile, staff members working near the isolation ward housing five suspected patients of coronavirus at Kasturba Hospital have complained that they have been provided single-layer surgical masks, which do not provide adequate protection from the virus. They have demanded respirator-N95 masks, as recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO).

The new strain of coronavirus — 2019-nCoV — has symptoms similar to that of cough and cold and spreads through droplets released during coughing, sneezing or during unprotected physical contact with a sick person. “We are working in close proximity to the isolation ward. The virus can spread through air, so we are at a vulnerable position. We have informed the officials, but so far, we have been only given surgical masks,” said a nurse working near the isolation ward. However, doctors said only those who come in direct contact with the quarantined patients require the N95 masks.

Epidemiologist Dr Om Shrivastav said N95 masks are recommended for those working in the isolation ward.

“Surgical masks are loose and fail to block tiny particles in air so, we recommend N95 for staffers working inside the isolation ward. Those working outside the ward do not require a respirator,” he said.