Srinagar, Dec 29: Inadequate facilities and lack of coordination between healthcare workers is posing a grave threat of H1N1 influenza or swine flu pandemic to Kashmir. There has been already a state-wide surge in the disease with four deaths in less than a fortnight.
 Although government claims that two isolation centres have been created at SK Institute of Medical Sciences and SMHS Hospital, but none of them has a ventilator which, doctors say, is a must for treating swine flu patients. Besides, the lone swine surveillance centre at Sanatnagar here is also inapt for treating patients, reducing it to a mere sample-collection centre.
 Senior doctors at SKIMS told Greater Kashmir that in the name of isolation ward the hospital had a disaster management room whose pathway passes through the general observation ward.
 “The isolation ward, whatever it was, was not being used to admit the suspected patients,” they said, adding that the criticism forced SKIMS administration today to shift the ward to 17-bed chemotherapy centre.
 “But it’s still not completely isolated as it shares the corridor with minor operation theatre and accident emergency,” they revealed.
 A 20-year old Ganderbal girl and a 58-year old businessman from Mattan Islamabad died of swine flu at SKIMS recently. A senior doctor at SKIMS has tested positive for the disease while a senior resident is a suspected patient. Besides, two deaths have been reported from Jammu and there are around 89 confirmed cases in the state.
 Doctors said victims were kept in the general observation ward where they might have infected other people including some doctors as well. “A matter of grave concern is that the infected doctor is associated with ward 6 while as the patients who died of swine flu were admitted in ward 5, and the doctor was not even treating them. This shows that swine-flu virus is there in SKIMS and God knows how many more will get infected,” they said.
 A strong possibility, they said, was that the businessman who passed away “might have died for want of ventilator.”
 “He was kept in general observation ward without Tami flu and ventilator till he died. He was there for 16 days and his report came around four days after his death,” they informed.
 At SMHS, the disaster management room-turned-isolation centre is no better. Senior doctors said the suspected swine flu patients were being admitted alongside routine cases.
 “Normally there should be a designated ventilator in the isolation ward but that’s not the case with SMHS,” they said.
 The nodal officer for swine flu at SMHS, Dr Shabir Ahmad Dar, said a ventilator has been earmarked for the isolation ward. “Whenever we feel the need we will shift it to the isolation ward.”

Government claim a mere paper work:
 In mid summer the government had claimed to have earmarked Rs 25 lakhs for setting up a testing lab at SKIMS and other logistic support. Months later the state nodal office was asked to estimate the funds required but around six months after the project is ‘still in pipeline.’
 “We have submitted the estimate but it is still in the pipeline,” State Nodal Officer for swine flu, Dr Shafaqat Khan said. “Funds were for setting up a lab at SKIMS, purchase of ventilators and other logistic support for fighting the disease,” he said.

Lack of coordination between centres:
 What shows the lack of coordination is that the State Nodal Officer for swine flu, Dr Shafaqat Khan, came to know about first swine flu death in Kashmir through media.
 “On our request SKIMS designated a nodal officer for swine flu. But when we contacted him after learning about the death of the girl he was not even knowing that any such patient had been admitted in the institute,” Dr Khan said.
 About SMHS, the concerned doctors are unaware that the businessman who died at SKIMS was admitted at SMHS before he was shifted on December 2.
 “I don’t know about it,” said Nodal Officer for swine flu at SMHS, Dr Shabir.

Need for all-inclusive centre:
 The in-charge Sanatnagar Surveillance Centre, Dr Nisar-ul-Hasan, said the isolation wards didn’t have enough facilities to treat swine flu patients. 
 “They are befooling patients because they don’t even have proper isolation centres,” he said confirming Sanatnagar centre was mere sample collection centre. The state, he said, needs an all-inclusive swine flu centre.

Lastupdate on : Tue, 29 Dec 2009 21:30:00 Makkah time
Lastupdate on : Tue, 29 Dec 2009 18:30:00 GMT
Lastupdate on : Wed, 30 Dec 2009 00:00:00 IST