Tamil Nadu - Chennai

Ensure hygiene, government hospitals told

— Photo: K.V. Srinivasan

INSPECTION: Health Minister M.R.K.Panneerselvam and Health Secretary V.K.Subburaj at the Institute of Mental Health in Chennai on Sunday.

CHENNAI: Following the death of four patients and the outbreak of water-borne diseases in a ward of the Institute of Mental Health, here, the Health Department has ordered all government hospitals to ensure good hygiene and sanitation on their premises.

Attributing the outbreak at the IMH to contamination of water sources because of rain, the Health Department has issued a note of caution to all government hospitals in rain-hit districts of Tamil Nadu to prevent such incidents.

Chlorine tablets and bleaching powder have been distributed to the hospitals, primary health centres and taluk-level hospitals to improve hygiene and sanitation situation.

“The tests performed on the patients of the IMH has revealed e-coli bacteria, pointing to contaminated water,” Principal Secretary, Health, V.K.Subburaj, told The Hindu. “So we are ensuring that all water sources in hospitals are safe. Samples from all the water sources on campus will be tested periodically. In addition to the chlorine-treatment by Metrowater, chlorine tablets will also be dropped locally into the water sources and containers.”

Corporation health authorities went around city hospitals chlorinating the water sources. The civic body staff also helped to clean and chlorinate water at the IMH. They advised the IMH authorities to keep up the level of chlorination, sanitise ward floors twice a day and clear the brambles and bushes on campus.

Some buildings were found unfit for habitation and a recommendation was made to raze them and shift patients.

Patients at the IMH have been shifted to two new buildings on the campus, Health Minister M.R.K. Panneerselvam said. Electrification of the premises was still to be completed, and would be finished by Sunday morning.

IMH authorities had complained that shortage of staff was a serious problem and came in the way of taking care of patients.

In order to address this, the Health Department had given the go-ahead to take up outsourcing of professionals on a temporary basis. Permanent appointments would be made soon.

The patients with diarrhoeal disease admitted to the Communicable Diseases Hospital continued to remain out of danger. Sources said they would be discharged over the next couple of days.

The post-mortem reports of the four patients who died on Friday morning would be available on Sunday morning.

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