With 2,000 dengue cases reported across the State and 200 still under treatment, Punjab Government on Monday issued instructions that reports of all suspected dengue cases must be sent to the health department.
Issuing these instructions during a high level meeting, the State Health and Family Welfare Minister Surjit Kumar Jiyani asked all the departments to work collectively to stop spread of dengue in the State. The meeting was of the State task force constituted for inter-sectoral coordination and involvement of other stakeholder departments in prevention and control of Dengue and other Vector Borne Diseases in the State.
During the meeting, Jiyani said that as many as 2,000 cases of dengue were reported from different parts of Punjab till date, and out of these, 1,800 were treated and 20 were under treatment in different hospitals in the State. Minister also warned the private hospitals for creating panic among the public about dengue and said that strict action would be taken against such hospitals. He said that the State Government has constituted a dengue review committee which would review all such cases and real cases of dengue would be listed.
Jiyani said that Dengue testing is free of cost at government hospitals, separate beds have been identified for dengue patients in all government hospitals (with mosquito nets), supportive treatment of dengue is given free in all government hospitals. Blood Component Separators are available in all districts for severe patients of dengue (Dengue Haemorrhagic Fever), aphresis machines are available at six Civil Hospitals at Amritsar, Bathinda, Jalandhar, ludhiana, SAS Nagar and Sangrur and at GMC Amritsar and Patiala.