The delay in arrival of reports of patients suspected to be suffering from Swine flu has raised question marks on the efficacy of the system of sample collection and reporting.
The delay in arrival of reports of swine flu tests from Delhi is causing problems to the health department officials, doctors treating these patients and their anxious family members.The department sends the samples of the suspected patients to National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) based at New Delhi. It is learnt that the NCDC is so packed up with samples of suspected patients these days that the process of tests and sending the reports is taking unusually more time. Ironically enough the test reports of some of the patients suffering from the disease arrived after their deaths.
When contacted the district in charge of integrated disease Surveillance programme, Dr Puneet Chandra said that there is no set pattern in availability of the reports. Sometimes the reports arrive within two to three days and in some cases it takes six to seven days, he said.
The district health department has so far sent 52 samples of suspected patients of swine flu to NCDC this month and reports of eleven samples are awaited. Dr Chandra said that the department is planning to consider the swine flu test reports of molecular lab of the Mahant Indiresh hospital. He claimed that the delay in reporting of samples does not make much difference in treatment of the patients as the treatment of the disease is based on the symptoms and starts immediately.
He added that there is no need of panic on swine flu and people should practice personal hygiene to prevent infection from spreading.
Swine flu has taken eight lives so far in Dehradun district this year. The department has sent 106 samples of suspected patients to NCDC out of which 24 patients were found positive for the disease.