Set up expert committee at Bengaluru's govt children's hospital: Devi Shetty panel

The Karnataka government-appointed task force headed by eminent cardiologist Dr Devi Shetty to prepare for the possible third wave on Saturday recommended setting up of Centre of Excellence and an Expert Committee for Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome--Children (MIS-C) at the Indira Gandhi Institute of Child Health (IGICH), Bengaluru.

The task force, largely consisting of paediatricians, made the recommendation in the backdrop of an increasing number of children suffering from MIS-C as a post-covid complication. The trend has also been reported among the newborns delivered by Covid positive mothers. IGICH is the largest children's health facility available in the public set up in the city and the State.

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The committee also recommended setting up of Paediatric Covid-19 Regional Centre of Excellence with 50 beds in Paediatric ICU, 100 beds in High Dependency Unit, 20 beds in Neonatal ICU, 20 beds in Sick Neonatal Care Unit has also been recommended to be set up at KIMS-Hubballi, Vajpayee Institute of Medical Sciences (Bowring), Bengaluru, Gulbarga Institute of Medical Sciences, Kalaburagi, Hassan Institute of Medical Sciences, Hassan and Shivamogga Institute of Medical Sciences, Shivamogga.

The panel has also recommended recruiting assistant professors in various autonomous institutes under various departments like Paediatric Medicine, Neonatology and in sub-specialities like General Medicine, Anaesthesia, Radiology, Microbiology, Pathology, Otorhinolaryngology, and Ophthalmology, with a single-window administrative clearance in all autonomous institutes under the medical education department. All the beds in the hospital should be equipped with oxygen delivery facilities.