Doctor, I think I have fever and swine flu

PMC-run hospital finds it difficult to cope with influx of people who suspect they have Swine Flu

Doctor, I think I have fever and swine flu

PMC-run hospital finds it difficult to cope with influx of people who suspect they have Swine Flu

With 47 cases of swine fluu00a0six added yesterday being detected in city, the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC)-run Naidu Hospital is finding it difficult to cope with the influx of people who suspect that they have contracted the disease.

Hence, to reduce the load on the hospital, the PMC has appealed to the public not to get themselves admitted unless it is confirmed from the National Institute of Virology that they have tested positive for swine flu. The hospital has a capacity of only 20 beds in the swine flu ward.

Dr Dilip Sarda, president, Indian Medical Association (IMA), said our hospitals too should share the burden with Naidu Hospital. And doctors referring even suspected cases to Naidu Hospital is not helping.

"To meet the growing number of swine flu cases, we are doubling our capacity to 40," said Dr R R Pardeshi, chief of health department, PMC. "So far, we have 19 patients undergoing H1N1 treatment and five of them are likely to be discharged on Monday."

Dr Sarda said that IMA's 2,600 members in the city "can certainly guide anybody who wants information of H1N1. This can reduce the load on Naidu Hospital".

Don't panic
Meanwhile, PMC Commissioner Mahesh Zagde has advised people not to panic. According to him, so far 428 cases have been screened at Naidu Hospital and only 161 were considered as close contacts. "After sending throat swabs of all these cases, only 42 cases tested positive for the H1N1 virus," he said.

Mayor Rajlaxmi Bhosale added that it was better to have home quarantine than at Naidu Hospital, especially for schoolchildren. "It is very heart wrenching to watch these children living without their parents in the isolation wards," she said.