Many turn to Google Maps for help with directions. Now, a map could help those in medical emergencies like cardiac arrests and strokes get the location of the nearest government hospital that will provide prompt and protocol-based treatment.
The Tamil Nadu Accident and Emergency Care Initiative (TAEI) has developed a map that gives the locations of the nearest government hospitals —hub and spoke hospitals — equipped to treat patients with cardiac arrests and strokes.
The link for the map that gives the location of hospitals where heart attacks will be treated promptly and where free thrombolysis is available for treating strokes is available on the TAEI website — www.taeionline.com.
“For those who choose to come on their own to the hospital, the map will be of help,” a Health Department official said.
TAEI has developed ‘a hub and spoke’ model comprising hospitals in the State under ST Elevated Myocardial Infarction (STEMI) and Stroke Care and Rapid Intervention with Plasminogen Activator and Thrombectomy (SCRIPT).
In STEMI, there are 18 hubs where cath labs are available and angioplasty can be done and 154 spoke hospitals where thrombolysis can be done.
In SCRIPT, there are 23 hubs (government medical colleges) and 55 spokes (government district headquarters, taluk and non-taluk hospitals).
“In SCRIPT, a hub centre has facilities for thrombolysis as well as thrombectomy for thrombotic stroke patients, and conservation and surgical management for haemorrhagic stroke patients. In spokes, thrombolysis and conservative management is available,” the official said. In thromboylsis, a drug is given that goes and chemically dissolves thrombus, a blood clot in the blood vessel. Using surgery — open or endovascular approach — to mechanically clear the clot is thrombectomy, he explained.
Training for all hubs and spokes was completed at the Institute of Neurology, Rajiv Gandhi Government General Hospital. A total of 150 doctors, 60 nurses and 23 CT technicians have been trained till now.
K. Senthil Raj, mission director, National Health Mission-Tamil Nadu, said that through the hub and spoke model, they were able to start thrombolysis for patients faster within the golden hour, thereby saving more persons.
