Nagaland Health minister calls for concerted effort to fight Covid-19 second wave

Our Correspondent
Kohima, June 4 (EMN): Nagaland’s minister for Health and Family Welfare, S Pangnyu Phom has called for concerted effort to fight the second wave of Covid-19 with all resources, together.

He addressed a press conference at the Directorate of Health and Family Welfare in Kohima on Friday.

‘This time (second wave), the virus is much more virulent than it was last time. Our healthcare workers and frontline workers are performing their duties, working for long hours under stress and staying away from their families for long time, at the risk to their personal well-being,’ he said.

While maintaining that private hospitals have also taken the responsibility by fighting the disease shoulder to shoulder with the government hospitals, he said that the support extended by the churches and the civil society-based organisations has been encouraging. “We need their continued support to ensure that the spread to the rural areas is minimised,” he added.

Oxygen cylinder capacity 5 times more than before

The Health minister asserted that the state government has taken a number of steps to fight the pandemic and was aware that oxygen therapy is a critical requirement in Covid management.

“We have procured cylinders and at the moment, we have nearly five times the oxygen cylinders capacity that we had before the second wave hit us,” he informed.

He also highlighted that with the help of Indian government, three pressure swing adsorption (PSA) oxygen plants at Kohima, Mokokchung and Dimapur have been made operational, while similar plants at other district headquarters and the Christian Institute of Health Science and Research (CIHSR) are also being set up.

He also informed that the state has got more than 1500 oxygen concentrators for health facilities up to the level of Primary Health Centre (PHC).

Phom further stated that the state has overhauled oxygen supply chain by setting up State Depot at Chümoukedima Police Complex to cater to the district of Dimapur and Peren, and refilling for Kohima Zonal Depot, which in turn caters to the need of Kohima, Phek, Wokha and Kiphire districts.

The Zonal Depot at Mokokchung, he said, caters to the needs of Mokokchung, Tuensang, Noklak, Longleng and Zunheboto districts, wherein the refilling is done directly from Sivasagar, whereas refilling for Mon district is done from Sivasagar/ Dibrugarh plant for unhindered and sufficient availability of oxygen.

Oxygen supplied beds

The Health minister admitted that there was acute shortage of oxygen-supplied hospital beds in Dimapur when the second wave started in the state, but the demand was met after Private Hospitals and CIHSR came forward and joined hands with the government, for which he extended his gratitude.

He reiterated that the government, on its part, is extending full support to private hospitals by ensuring oxygen supply, providing cylinders, concentrators and ventilators.

Meanwhile, Phom informed that the government is in the process of setting up a 200-bedded Acute Care Facility at the CIHSR campus on a war footing. ‘This will be a pre-engineered modern structure, which will continue to be used as a medical facility after we are done with Covid-19,’ he said, adding that the facility will be an additional asset to Dimapur and Nagaland.

Expressing concern over Covid cases being reported in some villages, he maintained that a detailed standard operating procedure for containing and managing the pandemic in rural areas has been issued, while the State War Room, district task forces, the village task forces are fully engaged in managing the disease by taking help from all.

Vaccination: Listen to experts

Phom stressed on the need to increase vaccination among the rural population, sayingthat it the most effective tool to preventing infection.

The government has also instructed the district task forces (DTFs) to mobilise through outreach activities and set up vaccination sites in villages so that entire villages are covered without wastage of vaccine.

The Health minister further urged the people of the state not to be misled by false videos and rumours spread by ill-informed people but to listen to the scientists and medical professionals and take the vaccine.

Phom was accompanied by Principal Secretary Amardeep S Bhatia; Principal Director Dr. Neikhrielie Khimiao; National Health  Mission (NHM) Mission Director, Dr. Talitemsula Jamir;  State Nodal Officer for Integrated Disease Surveillance Programme (IDSP) Dr. Nyanthung Kikon; and State Immunisation Officer (SIO), Dr. Ritu Thurr during the press conference.