The Hindu : New Delhi News : AIIMS body seeks cleaner campus

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Monday, Aug 04, 2008
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AIIMS body seeks cleaner campus

Bindu Shajan Perappadan

Expresses concern over inadequate measures taken for prevention of diseases
Seeks more administrative powers for Disease Prevention and Outbreak Response Cell

NEW DELHI: Advocating for a cleaner and disease-free campus, the All-India Institute of Medical Sciences Faculty Association has written to the Institute director expressing concern over inadequate measures taken on the campus for prevention and control of diseases with epidemic potentials including dengue and chikungunya.

The faculty association at its executive meeting on July 29 had expressed concern at the “inadequate disposal of waste, clogging of drainage holes and pipes, which were leading to accumulation of water at multiple sites”.

This, an association member said, was creating potential breeding sites for mosquitoes. “The situation assumes more significance in view of the ongoing construction work and lack of continued and sustained efforts including periodic monitoring of the situation and innovative decision-making on the campus,” stated the letter.

A senior faculty association member said he was anguished at the current status of the Disease Prevention and Outbreak Response Cell (DPORC) at AIIMS, which is currently without a chairman. DPORC chairman Bir Singh had resigned this past week.

The letter noted that the faculty association members were pained to know that the role of this committee was only advisory in nature as per order from administration.

“The DPORC was created with a different mandate in 2007. This cell was created to handle all outbreaks. However, DPORC does not have any administrative and financial authority, where as the nature of a community preventive health care work requires proper investment and direction in manpower and financial allocations,” stated the letter.

The faculty association has now demanded that the DPORC be made a broad based unit and include members from various departments including microbiology, medicine, emergency medicine and laboratory medicine as well as officials of health services from the Municipal Corporation of Delhi and the New Delhi Municipal Council and the Directorate of National Vector-borne Diseases Control Programmes.

“This will facilitate proper decision making and rapid implementation of decisions,” the letter said.

It has also asked for the DPORC to be given adequate authority and administrative powers to carry out its mandate and responsibility of “taking precautions to prevent outbreak of epidemics and diseases in residential campuses at AIIMS”. “The faculty association has demanded building and strengthening the capacity of health systems for management surveillance, prevention, control of dengue fever and dengue hemorrhagic fever at the Institute.

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