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Amid Covid-19, Rajasthan deploys 400 OPD vans to treat other diseases
The Rajasthan Chief Minister said regular patients are suffering as some hospitals have been dedicated to only to treat Covid-19 patients.
Rajasthan chief minister Ashok Gehlot on Tuesday ordered the deployment of 400 vans which will be used as mobile outpatient department (OPD) units across the state to ensure uninterrupted health services for the public.
The government has also decided to issue appointment letter to 9000 Auxiliary Nursing Midwifery (ANM) and General Nursing and Midwifery (GNM) that were pending for the last two years.
Addressing newspersons through video conferencing, chief minister Gehlot said, “We have decided that 400 mobile vans will be deployed at sub-divisional headquarter and other places across the state, they will work as mobile OPD units.”
He said the Chief Medical and Health Officers (CMHO) have been directed for the same and the units will be operational from Wednesday in rural and urban areas.
Also read: Testing, quarantine more effective than lockdown to check Covid-19, suggests epidemiological model
“The public can approach these vans for any general health related problem. The mobile units are instructed, if any person approaches with serious illness, the CMHO should be immediately informed to ensure that the treatment starts on priority at government or private hospital,” he said.
The CM said regular patients are suffering as some hospitals have been dedicated to only to treat Covid-19 patients. The private hospitals should fulfil their responsibility but some are not doing so and the health department has issued notices to them. “Strict action will be taken against hospitals which deny treatment. It is the moral and social responsibility of private hospital to provide treatment to patients approaching them,” he said.
Rajasthan has recorded 1,576 cases of Covid-19 so far.
The government also decided to boost manpower in the fight against Covid-19 as it gave appointment letters to 9000 ANM and GNM from 2018 recruitment.
Gehlot who also interacted with a five-member central team through video-conference, emphasised on a centralised procedure for the procurement of testing kits, ventilators, PPE and other medical equipment by the central government.
He said that the centre should procure the equipment and make available to the states so as to avoid competitions among states.
“The rapid testing kit results are inaccurate and it is a matter of concern.
A research team of SMS medical college and Rajasthan University of Health Sciences is examining it. The further course of action in context of the rapid testing kit will be taken after the response from the Indian council of medical research and report of the research team,” said Gehlot.
He also raised the issues of migrant labours, demanded a relief package by the central government to all the states, packages for reviving business and for social security of people among others. The central government should announce a relief package for states without any further delay, he reiterated.
Earlier in the day, the Centre asked states to suspend rapid testing for Covid-19 for the next two days, following complaints from at least two states that the antibody testing kits were returning erroneous results.
