Vaccine shortage scares GGH staff in Vizag
According to a source, the hospital staff are worried about their health as the swine flu vaccine vials were not provided to them till now.
Visakhapatnam: Severe staff shortage and reluctance of the existing employees to attend duties as they have not been given swine flu vaccines this year is creating problems for patients at the Government Hospital for Chest and Infectious Diseases.
With winter season beginning, the number of patients showing symptoms of H1N1 virus reaching the hospital has increased as it is the nodal centre for swine flu. Patients with swine flu symptoms are also being referred by the King George Hospital to the GHCID.
While the disease claimed the life of two patients in late October, seven patients are presently undergoing treatment at the Infectious Disease ward. According to a source, the hospital staff are worried about their health as the swine flu vaccine vials were not provided to them till now.
These vaccines are given to doctors and nursing staff of government hospitals by the end of monsoon as the influenza strikes during the change of season.
Recently, district collector Pravin Kumar directed the district medical officials to procure 100 vaccines from the market so that the employees can attend duties confidently.
DMHO Tirupathi Rao informed that the single dose swine flu vaccine vials have arrived on Saturday. They will be disbursed to the government doctors within a couple of days.
However, GHCID superintendent Dr G. Sambasiva Rao said that the hospital staff were given the vaccine vials left from the previous batch, and they have no need to procure immediately as they are potent for over a year.
Meanwhile, the district administration has decided to continue the surveillance programmes in GVMC limits for the next 15 days. District collector has urged the slum federation resource persons and UCD personnel to create awareness on swine flu to more than 3.5 lakh people living in slum areas of the city.