Late Kannada actor Puneeth Rajkumar.
Credit: DH Photo
The second phase of the Puneeth Rajkumar Hrudaya Jyothi scheme will be launched in Dharwad on Friday, bringing a total of 71 spoke and 11 hub hospitals under the fold of the scheme.
The Health department considers this both an expansion and upgrading of the ST-Elevated Myocardial Infarction (STEMI) programme.
Under this phase, blood clot-dissolving Tenecteplase injections will be provided to all the spoke hospitals, which include both taluk and a few district-level hospitals across the state.
“The injection is more effective and easy to administer, and will stabilise the patient within a few minutes. The government has procured these injections at a cost of Rs 32 crore and will provide them to all the spoke hospitals,” said D Randeep, Health Commissioner.
Once administered, this buys patients enough time to be shifted to hubs or other hospitals for treatment.
Health Minister Dinesh Gundu Rao told DH that an AI-powered model, developed by medtech company Tricog Health, will immediately flag any elevation in the ST wave in an echocardiogram (ECG), directing doctors at the spoke hospitals to administer the injection.
In the first phase, the scheme covered 45 spokes and the three Sri Jayadeva Institute of Cardiovascular Sciences and Research (SJICR) centres in Bengaluru, Mysuru and Kalaburagi, as hubs. In this phase, private medical colleges have been roped in to act as hubs.
The Health department has called for tenders to procure 40 automated external defibrillators (AEDs) to be placed in public spaces
such as airports and major railway stations, where some medical assistance is already available.
These are used to revive someone who experiences a sudden heart attack.
“We are working out the protocols for this,” Gundu Rao said.
Jeevaraksha training will also be provided to first responders in public, such as mall staff and emergency response teams at railway stations, and nurses at the spoke-level so they can stabilise patients and support doctors, respectively, noted Randeep.
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