On a visit to the Institute of Child Health, Egmore, on Saturday, State Health Minister C. Vijaya Baskar stressed that parents should bring in children who fall ill to government hospitals without delay.
“Late referrals are a problem,” he said.
The Minister and Director of Public Health K. Kolandaisamy said patients must not self-medicate or neglect a fever, and must avoid unnecessary injections.
The Minister interacted with patients and spoke to doctors at the fever ward, as well as at the Intensive Medical Care Unit, and other wards.
The hospital has a total of 90 children admitted with fever, of whom four have tested positive for dengue, doctors said.
“We are holding special fever camps where we are asking doctors to spend more time with the public,” he said. A total of ₹13.95 crore has been allotted for the mosquito-borne diseases control programme.
In addition, hand bills would be distributed among students across schools and videos would be brought out to spread awareness, he said. The State has seen a surge in dengue cases this year, with 5,968 cases reported as of August 6, which is higher than the number of cases reported in the last three years.
