MADURAI
As a measure to provide round-the-clock medical services and strengthen the maternal care provided at Urban Primary Health Centres (UPHC), three of these facilities in the city will be upgraded to Community Health Centres (CHC).
The UPHCs at Sellur, K. Pudur, and Ansari Nagar are the three centres that will be upgraded to CHCs.
Under the guidelines of the National Health Mission, there must be one UPHC for every 50,000 people. Currently, there are 31 UPHCs in the city.
Each Community Health Centre will have a minimum of 30 beds. The strength of the medical personnel will increase as each facility will have two medical officers, a gynaecologist, paediatrician and an anaesthetist.
There will also be an operation theatre in each CHC, which will conduct sterilisation and caesarean surgeries. “Our main focus is to strengthen maternal and child care at these health facilities. By performing surgeries at these centres, we can reduce the number of cases being referred to Government Rajaji Hospital,” he said.
An upgraded laboratory with x-ray machines and facilities to perform ultrasonography, which will be critical to monitor the growth of a foetus during pregnancy.
City Health Officer (in-charge) of Madurai Corporation S. Senthil said that the three Centres have been selected based on their locality and the existing infrastructure present at these facilities. “The K. Pudur and Sellur UPHCs are almost ready and will start commissioning as CHC within 15 days,” he said.
Explaining the importance of the upgradation, Mr. Senthil said that unlike UPHCs, medical officers will be present round-the-clock. “This will strengthen the primary care in the city and thereby reduce the burden on tertiary health facilities,” he said.
