Covid war room to field measles queries

The central control room will oversee and assist war rooms in the 24 wards of the city. The control room was set up to take Covid-related queries in the beginning of the pandemic in June 2020

Mumbai: Given the sharp rise in the cases of measles in the city, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has started a central measles control room in its headquarters.

Covid war room to field measles queries

The central control room will oversee and assist war rooms in the 24 wards of the city. The control room was set up to take Covid-related queries in the beginning of the pandemic in June 2020. A part of the workforce will be used to field queries on measles from now, while the other part will continue to take Covid-related calls. Meanwhile, 184 new suspected cases of measles were found by the health volunteers across the city on Wednesday.

The war rooms and the central control room were never shut down, even though queries on Covid had come to a trickle over time. “We have sensitised the staff manning these war rooms now to address various queries of the parents who suspect their child suffering from measles. The staff will put them in touch with medical officers of the respective wards, who will guide them about the further course of action needed and help with hospitalisation, if such a situation arises,” said BMC’s executive health officer, Dr Mangala Gomare.

Of the fresh cases found in the course of screening conducted by accredited social health activists and community health workers, on Wednesday, the largest (87) were found between the ages of one and five. Twelve needed to be hospitalised, nine of whom are between one and four.

The civic body has also made additional arrangements in hospitals to manage the caseload (see box). Kasturba Hospital, in Chichpokli, currently has three wards with 83 beds, 10 ICU beds and five ventilators. Sixty-one patients are undergoing treatment at the hospital, four of whom are on oxygen support and one on ventilator.

The hospital is planning to start another ward with 48 beds if the need arises. Similarly, it is also set to increase the existing 10 ICU beds to 20 and existing five ventilators to 17.

Superintendent of the hospital, Dr Chandrakant Pawar, said free ambulances have been put on road to bring serious patients to Kasturba Hospital.