Govt to convert railway coaches into isolation wards: Atal Dulloo

Jammu: Financial Commissioner, Health and Medical Education Department, Atal Dulloo Saturday said government is planning to turn some railway coaches into isolation wards for patients with coronavirus.
This decision was taken after a meeting between Railways department and the Health and Medical Education Department at Jammu in which various modalities were discussed to convert the railway bogeys as isolation wards. The meeting was also attended by Divisional Traffic Manager Railways, Jammu, Chetan Taneja; Director (Coordination), New Medical Colleges, DrYashpal Sharma; Dy SP Railway, Anita Pawar and other officers.
During the meeting Atal Dullo asked the railway authorities to provide at least 100 isolation beds in coaches in Jammu to augment the isolation facilities for COVID-19 cases.
The FC was informed by the railway authorities that they have identified the bogeys to be converted into isolation facilities and will be stationed at a proper location at an earliest. The health authorities have also asked the railway officials for some modifications to be incorporated in the identified bogeys for enhancing patient safety, which were given due consideration by the railway authorities.
The FC said utmost care will be taken in preparing the bogeys for isolation purposes keeping the safety of patients in mind. He said patient safety is priority of the government and proper facilities will be made available to the patients in these isolation facilities. The bogeys will be stationed at a proper place in the next two to three days after taking into consideration the feasibility and advantageous aspects of the locations.
It was also given out in the meeting that training will be also imparted to the railways employees who will be associated there and that process will be started in the next three days.
It was also given out that a detailed SOP for operation and use of these isolation coaches will also be issued in order to provide adequate facilities for the COVID-19 patients.
Earlier, the Financial Commissioner also held a video conference with the senior army officers from the Northern Command in order to finalize the modalities for establishing makeshift isolation hospitals in Jammu and Kashmir utilizing the services of the army.
The VC was attended by the senior army officers from the Northern Command, officers from Base Hospital Jammu, army officers from Kashmir Division, Director Health Services Jammu, Dr. Renu Sharma; Dr. Yashpal Sharma; Joint Director Planning Health and Medical Education, Madan Lal and other officers from Kashmir division also attended through video conferencing.
The meeting was held to discuss the modalities and the infrastructure and the manpower that will be needed in establishing makeshift isolation hospitals.
Various locations came up for discussion during the meeting in order to establish the isolation facilities. The possible locations that came up for discussion include a stadium and an ashram in Jammu and any decision will be taken after following proper guidelines before finalizing any location to be converted into a makeshift COVID-19 hospital.
It was given out that about 100-200 bedded hospital each in Jammu and Kashmir will be established by the army to cater to the possibility of a spike in the coronavirus cases.
The FC directed Dr. Renu Sharma and Dr.Yashpal Sharma to work in a coordinated manner with the army and visit the discussed location and see the feasibility and the advantageous positions they present. He directed them to see the requirements and the infrastructure that will be needed in the establishment of the makeshift COVID-19 hospitals. They were directed to see the manpower and the infrastructure that is available with the army and what else will be provided by the health department.
He was informed that the army authorities in Kashmir have already identified places that will be converted into isolation facilities.
The FC directed the Director Health Services, Kashmir to visit the places and discuss the modalities with the army so that makeshift isolation hospital will be made available at the earliest.
It was decided that another meeting will be held in the next week to discuss the final road map to be used for establishing makeshift isolation hospitals by the army.
The Financial Commissioner also visited the Gandhi Nagar COVID-19 hospital and took stock of the arrangements that have been put in place for treating COVID-19 patients. During his visit, he directed the authorities to keep adequate supplies of medicine and asked them to keep all the machinery and other necessary equipment in place so that the newly established 200 bedded block caters to the COVID-19 patients in an efficient manner.
Recently the government had dedicated the Government Hospital, Gandhi Nagar, Jammu, entirely as COVID-19 hospital. The Gandhi Nagar hospital already had in place 70 beds for isolation facilities thus enhancing the isolation capacity of the hospital to 270 beds.