Dengue menace looms large

Tribune News Service

Bathinda, August 28

The dengue menace is again at the doorstep after the city received heavy rainfall yesterday and today. 

Around 70 patients have undergone tests for MAC Eliza to date, besides three patients confirmed positive for dengue. 

The health authorities have made women’s ward as dengue ward but the room is locked and suspected patients are not allowed to enter it.

The Civil Surgeon is of the view that only confirmed patients should be allowed entry in dengue ward. 

Interestingly, a senior MD doctor at the hospital recommended that the two suspected dengue cases to be kept under observation in the dengue ward until they were confirmed negative in MAC Eliza test but all in vain. 

Senior doctor Dr Ramesh Maheshwari said, “I had recommended that two suspected patients of dengue should be kept in a special ward for dengue patients where the patients are give special care under mosquito net but it did not happen. There are guidelines for taking special care of these patients. Earlier, for a long time, it has been in practice that suspected dengue patients were kept in a special ward but now the room is locked.”

Bathinda Civil Surgeon Dr RS Randhawa said, “There is no need to keep suspected patients in the dengue ward. They are given the general ward. No patients of dengue had reached the hospital for treatment as only three cases were reported positive, out of which the first belonged to Mansa, the second was from a private hospital in Bathinda while third was from Beer Behman and he recovered.”

The civil surgeon had earlier refused to create a dengue ward. However, after The Tribune highlighted the matter, such ward came into existence but it is still out of reach of dengue patients.