No expert to operate dengue test machine at Gidderbaha hospital

Archit Watts

Muktsar, November 5

Muktsar district has reported 311 dengue positive cases till today, while Gidderbaha town has reported just one. The reason: The Civil Hospital at Gidderbaha does not have a technician to operate the ELISA machine to conduct the dengue test.

As many as 103 positive cases are from Muktsar town, while 89 are from Malout town. Further, 36 dengue cases are from Chak Sherewala block, 23 from Alamwala block, 41 from Doda block and 18 from Lambi block.

Sources in the Civil Hospital at Gidderbaha said the ELISA machine had arrived about a month ago, but there was no technician to operate it. They said, “When someone comes with symptoms of dengue, the blood sample is sent to Muktsar for the ELISA test. However, the number of such patients is negligible.”

“A majority of the people prefer to visit private hospitals, which conduct rapid card test. However, a patient can be declared positive for dengue only on the basis of ELISA technique of testing and not by the rapid diagnostic test (RDT),” said sources. They said last year, 32 dengue cases were reported from Gidderbaha town.

Dr Rashmi Chawla, Senior Medical Officer (SMO), Civil Hospital, Gidderbaha, said, “The number of dengue patients is less in Gidderbaha because we don’t have the ELISA test facility. Besides, fogging has been done everywhere in the town.”

Dr Sandeep Kaur, District Epidemiologist, Muktsar, said, “The threat of dengue fever is looming large and people should keep their surroundings clean. Our teams are regularly taking steps in this regard such as destroying dengue larvae.”

Samples sent to Muktsar

When someone comes with symptoms of dengue, the blood sample is sent to Muktsar for the ELISA test. However, the number of such patients is negligible. — Source