Textile products used in the healthcare sector are not just bandages, surgical masks and gloves. It includes implants such as hernia mesh, hygiene products, use-and-throw surgical clothing, etc.
Coimbatore region is a well-known hub for both, textiles and healthcare facilities. The Centre of Excellence for Medical Textiles at the South India Textile Research Association here has organised a three-day medical textile exhibition and conference till March 2 to promote the use of these products and to develop the industry for these products.
Sakthivel Perumalsamy, head of the Centre of Excellence, told The Hindu on Friday that Meditex 2014 and Medineeds 2014 aim at creating awareness among the public on medical textiles. Be it policemen, rural women, conservancy workers, surgeons, industry workers or IT professionals, special textile products are available for their safety and hygiene. Seminars will be held on all three days for students, surgeons, police officers, textile mill workers, foundry workers, and hospital housekeeping staff.
The exhibition is to promote the medical textile industry here. It has 60 participants, including 25 from other States and one from Germany. They have exhibited machinery to make some of these products, surgical gowns, clothing, diapers, gauze materials, implants, special beds, bandages, etc. The country has just a handful of machinery manufacturers and most of them import the critical components for the machinery. The industry can tap the opportunity available in the range of products and the machinery.
Availability of water, washing the regular textile products, and drying these are becoming a problem to the hospitals. Hence, most of them purchase use-and-throw non-woven products and these are available in kits too. However, these should be to specific standards. These issues are highlighted at the event.
Further, a Mumbai-based hospital will demonstrate on Saturday a complete suit made out of composite textile material. It protects the surgeons from infections, he said.
The event is supported by the Union Ministry of Textiles and the exhibition is open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
