Three new facilities were inaugurated on Saturday at AIIMS Bhopal by Apurva Chandra, Secretary Health, Union Ministry of Health & Family Welfare, in presence of Dr. Jaideep Mishra (ICAS), Additional Secretary and Financial Advisor, Union Ministry of Health & Family Welfare and Professor (Dr.) Ajai Singh, Executive Director & CEO, AIIMS Bhopal:- Centre of Excellence for Rare Diseases, AIIMS Bhopal, In-Vitro Fertilization (IVF) Skill Lab,  Matrix Assisted Laser Desorption Ionization-Time of Flight mass spectrophotometry (MALDI-TOF MS).

With the starting of these facilities, AIIMS Bhopal has not only further expanded the scope of services that are being provided at the institute, but also reiterated its strong commitment to providing exemplary healthcare to the people of the region. A brief description of these facilities is as under:

Centre of Excellence for Rare Diseases: The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare has recognized AIIMS Bhopal as a Centre of Excellence (CoE) for Rare Diseases, marking a significant milestone for healthcare in Central India. AIIMS Bhopal is the first such centre in Central India, dedicated to the comprehensive diagnosis, prevention, and treatment of rare diseases. MoHFW has sanctioned a grant of ?3 crore for the procurement of drugs for rare diseases and ?5 crore for the purchase of medical equipment.

The CoE for Rare Diseases at AIIMS Bhopal aims to address the critical need for specialized healthcare facilities in Central India, particularly for genetic disorders prevalent in the region, such as sickle cell disease, thalassemia, and muscular dystrophy. With approximately 20% of the local population being tribal, there is a significant burden of these genetic disorders.

The centre will target various beneficiaries, including pregnant women, newborns, and individuals suffering from rare disorders, providing screening for approximately 10,000 individuals per year and diagnosis and management for around 1,000 patients annually.The centre will carry out the teaching and training of medical personnel and patients to increase awareness about these disorders, leading to screening, prevention, early diagnosis, and treatment of rare disorders.

In-Vitro Fertilization (IVF) Skill Lab: The IVF Treatment Facility is expected to start very soon at AIIMS Bhopal, making it the first government facility offering IVF treatment in the state. The IVF Skill Lab is a training facility with several high-fidelity digital simulators that enable doctors to practice the various procedures required for infertility treatment and IVF, such as hysteroscopy, Ovum pick-up and Embryo Transfer as part of IVF training. These simulators are based on modern digital & AI technology and incorporate a wide variety of procedures and cases with varying difficulty levels for the trainees.  This allows the doctors to practice the procedures several times safely on the simulator before performing on real patients. This is a very important aspect towards ensuring patient safety.

Matrix Assisted Laser Desorption Ionization-Time of Flight Mass Spectrophotometry (MALDI-TOF MS): MALDI-TOF MS has emerged as a potential tool for microbial identification and diagnosis. It can identify pathogens, including rare microbes, within 15-30 minutes, in comparison to 18-24 hours with other automated systems. AIIMS Bhopal has procured this machine at a cost of Rs 1.5 crore. The recurring expenditure of this machine is also less than one eighth (1/8) of other automated identification systems. Hence, this equipment is hugely beneficial in providing treatment with a much shorter turnaround time and a lesser cost to patients suffering from infections.

Visit to the 3 D Bioprinter Facility: After the inauguration of the various facilities, and a round of the AIIMS Hospital, the dignitaries and delegation of officials from MoHFW (GOI), visited the recently established 3-D Bioprinter facility at the Tissue Engineering Facility in the Department of Translational Medicine at AIIMS Bhopal, supported by Vardhman Group under their Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiative.