JOIN USMinister for Health and Family Welfare U T Khader on Friday wrote to Union Health Minister Jagat Prakash Nadda, seeking clarity on the guidelines issued by the Union government to prevent an Ebola outbreak.
It is the second time in a row that the minister has urged the Centre to provide a comprehensive plan on the measures that ought to be adopted at the state level.
“We would like to stress the need for such a comprehensive plan in every state as a part of the national-level guidelines with statement of purpose to streamline and standardise our approach,” the letter reads.
Assuring that additional training would be provided to medical experts if need be, Khader also said Karnataka would host and conduct medical training for experts from other states as well.
The State has declared Ebola a ‘Public Health Emergency of International Concern’ and a detailed report about the precautionary measures that Karnataka has taken to prevent an Ebola outbreak had also been sent to Nadda. The report reveals that till date, there have been 11 suspected cases in the State, all of which tested negative.
Isolation wards
To quarantine a suspected case, 15-bedded isolation wards have been set aside at the Rajiv Gandhi Institute of Chest Diseases, Bengaluru, and Wenlock Hospital, Mangaluru.
A dedicated 108 ambulance has been set aside to commute the suspected cases to hospitals. The report also reveals that three specialists including a physician, a microbiologist and a nodal officer from the State have been trained for preparedness and response to Ebola disease at the National Institute of Health and Family Welfare.