Three Disaster Management Wards Set up at Government Hospital

With heavy rain is expected to lash the city, all doctors, including house surgeons, residents and postgraduate students, of Coimbatore Medical College and Hospital (CMCH) have been instructed to report for duty on Sunday to meet any eventuality. All heads of critical departments, including neurosurgery, orthopedics, surgery and anesthetics, have also been asked to work. The hospital has created three exclusive disaster management wards. Each ward could accommodate at least 60 patients. “They have all the equipment required to deal with trauma cases as we usually receive more such cases in times of natural disaster,” CMCH dean Dr B Ashokan said. “The wards will be managed fully by the heads of critical departments. Usually during floods, we get patients with body injuries and open wounds, and some who may need resuscitation.”

In the event of loss of power, CMCH has stocked adequate diesel to keep the entire hospital run on generator. “We have allotted separate generators for the disaster management wards. The hospital has 120 ventilators to offer trauma, emergency and life support for patients,” Ashokan said. Earlier, the hospital campus that was located on a low-lying area used to get flooded during heavy rain and regular power outage was common. “Three years ago, PWD officials raised the hospital’s ground level and also improved drainage systems,” the dean said. – TOI