JOIN USPHCs to screen for H1N1 soon
Speaking at a meeting of the Gram Panchayat secretaries called in view of the swine flu outbreak at Taluk Panchayat auditorium here on Monday, Dr Narayanaswamy said that 10-bed wards have been set up at SNR Hospital, R L Jalappa Hospital and KGF Hospital, exclusively to treat flu patients. Five-bed hospitals will be provided at the taluk level in future.
Symptoms
Allaying fears over the influenza, he said that effective treatment is available for the infection and the people need not panic. The disease, which has now spread to Bangalore, the neighbouring district, may surface in Kolar as well. However, adequate precautionary measures have been taken to check the spread.
Fever, cold, cough and throat pain appear in the infected person and it graduates to lung problem in a span of two or three days. Swine flu is a disease that affects lungs and throat swabs are taken to ascertain the infection. The swab is then dipped in a special solution and frozen to 70 degrees . It is later sent to test centres in a special van within 24 hours. The facility is available in the district. he detailed.
The effective treatment for infection comes in the form of Tamiflu tablets. The 75 mg tablet is administered twice daily for five days. If a person, who is in close contact with the infected, at a distance of six meters, exhibits symptoms within seven days, he should be administered Tamiflu tablets once a day, for ten days. The district has sufficient stock of this medicine, Dr Narayanaswamy elaborated.
In order to check the spread of the disease, an infected person should take care while sneezing, and should desist from spitting at public places. Viruses expelled during sneezing spread through air and cause infection.
Hands should not be brought in contact with nose and mouth, as far as possible. The Gram Panchayat secretaries should disseminate all these information to the public at large.
Sanitation drive
Taluk Panchayat president Udayashankar directed the Gram Panchayat secretaries to ensure fogging even inside the houses at the villages.
Cleaning of drainages should be taken up under National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme at all the 36 Gram Panchayats in the taluk. A cleanliness campaign should be launched inall the villages association with the SDMCs, he instructed.
District Leprosy Eradication Officer Dr Shantala, Taluk Panchayat vice-president Jayalakshmi, executive officer A Manjunath and Block Education Officer Nagaraja Gowda were present in the meeting.