IMA Punjab develops cost-effective ventilator

Jalandhar, August 11

Indian Medical Association (IMA), Punjab, has taken a leap forward to facilitate Covid-19 treatment to critically-ill patients under the President ship of Dr Navjot Dahiya and Secretary Dr Paramjit Maan.

IMA, Punjab, which is running a dedicated Covid hospital at Billi Chaharmi, near Shahkot, has introduced new ventilator equipment called High Flow Nasal Cannula (HFNC). Director of this Covid Hospital Dr SPS Sooch said this new form of ventilation therapy was being used at a few selected centres in Punjab.

Members of the IMA said until now, seriously-ill patients with breathing difficulties, requiring high flow oxygen were put on ventilators and to treat such patients, hospitals required highly complicated form of invasive ventilation which needed to be operated by highly-skilled paramedical and medical personnel.

This HFNC can be operated by ordinary paramedical staff/nurses, under the supervision of the doctors, as compared to the earlier used ventilators. This form of therapy is very effective in critically-ill patients. Moreover, this therapy is cost-effective as this machine costs around Rs 2 lakh as compared to conventional ventilator, which values around Rs 12 to 20 lakh, he said.

State president Dr Navjot Dahiya, along with Secretary Dr Paramjit Maan and Dr SPS Sooch, Director, COVID Hospital, demonstrated the functioning of this HFNC before the State Health Minister Balbir Singh Sidhu. — TNS

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