Tiruchi government hospital to get geriatric ward soon

The K.A.P. Viswanatham Government Medical College Hospital will soon have a geriatric ward.

It will soon join the list of a very few hospitals in the State that have a separate ward for elderly people. The ward is set up as per the standard guidelines of the National Programme for the Health Care of the Elderly (NPHCE). A sum of Rs. 37 lakh had been sanctioned for establishing the ward.

M.K. Muralidharan, Dean of the hospital, told

The Hindu that it was aimed at providing health care under one roof for patients aged above 60. It would mainly avoid admitting the elderly patients in faraway wards. The idea was to prevent them walking for too long in the hospital to get Out-Patient or In-Patient treatment.

He said as per the guidelines, the ward was established near the main OPD section. The ward would have 20 beds, 10 each for men and women, with centralised oxygen facility to treat respiratory problems. Common ailments among the geriatric population were hypertension, heart diseases, osteoarthritis, diabetes, cataract, and hearing impairments. The geriatric ward would have all basic facilities to treat them in the ward itself, except the speciality treatments. The ward was close to the pharmacy to facilitate the elderly patients get medicines without much difficulty.

Mr. Muralidharan said that railing and ramp would be provided at the ward to facilitate them to move with the support. They would have western toilets to make it easy for those with arthritis. Similarly, anti-skid tiles would be provided in the toilets.

As per the guidelines, the ward would be brightly lit and painted in bright colours. To provide an entertainment option, the ward would have a large television.

He said that civil work, interior work, and furniture fitting work had been taken up in full swing. The ward would be opened for public use within a month.