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The country has sufficient stock of drugs, testing kits and masks to combat any outbreak of H1N1 or Swine flu, Health Minister JP Nadda, said in a statement on Saturday.
Nadda said the Ministry was monitoring the situation on real-time basis. “We have also received information on logistics from 18 States. I am monitoring the situation closely,” he said in an official statement.
The Ministry has already issued necessary directions related to procurement, training, issuing of advisories and guidelines for State governments in a high level meeting which took place earlier this week to review the preparedness for tackling seasonal influenza (H1N1).
“A control room has already been set up and is fully functional now. We have also rolled out a nationwide awareness campaign on seasonal influenza (H1N1),” he said said, adding that “we have assured full support to the State governments. In fact, the Ministry has already issued three advisories to the State governments over the last one month and held a video conference with them to review their strategy and plans.”
During the review meeting, the Minister was informed that 10,000 PPE kit and 5,000 N95 masks are being procured by the Directorate General of Health Services and the process of procurement of at least three lakh tablets of Oseltamivir 75 mg and one lakh syrups is already underway.
The Ministry said around 7,000 diagnostic kits have already been distributed among various government laboratories and 15,000 more kits will be provided to them.
“New revised vaccination guidelines and clinical management guidelines have been issued to the State governments,” the release added.
Nadda also said that the process for training on ventilator management will be completed in the first half of November, and directed the Central government institutions to earmark sufficient number of beds for H1N1 patients with additional capacity.
Four Central government hospitals in Delhi –RML Hospital, Lady Hardinge, AIIMS and Safdarjung -- have already earmarked beds for H1N1 patients, the release added.
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