There has been a slow but steady progress at the Coimbatore Corporation-run dispensaries and maternity homes. The Corporation plans to spend around Rs. 13 crore for infrastructure development.
Under the National Urban Health Mission, the Corporation will utilise the money to construct new buildings and also improve patient amenities, says City Health Officer K. Santhoshkumar.
Notwithstanding the facilities to come, the Corporation’s health establishments are seeing good patronage, especially the maternity centres.
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The number of deliveries is likely to touch 134 this year. This is mostly due to urban health nurses, who visit the houses of all the carrying women from the low income group. They maintain a chart to track the health of the women and foetuses and encourage the to-be mothers to undergo scan at the maternity centres. If the women were to continue check ups, the Corporation provides financial assistance and now, the civic body also gives a baby kit after delivery, Dr. Santhoshkumar points out.
After delivery, the urban health nurses also take care of immunisation of the infants, he adds.
The number of outpatients the Corporation treats is also on the increase. It has gone up from 37,871 in January to 42,536 in September 2015. It is because the dispensaries are easily accessible to the residents as they are spread across the city. The quality of service the Corporation offers is reflected in the ISO certificates six maternity centres have got, says a civic body official.
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(reporting by
Karthik Madhavan)