Health department makes preparations to tackle AES cases in Gaya

Gaya: With the onset of summer, the health department has started preparations to tackle Acute Encephalitis Syndrome (AES) and Japanese Encephalitis (JE).According to ANMMCH superintendent Dr K K Sinha, 12 beds in the children’s ward of the hospital have been earmarked for the deadly disease. Besides treatment, the rehabilitation mechanism is also in place, he said.In recent times, due to preventive measures, awareness drive and mass immunisation of the vulnerable group, decline in the number of Encephalitis cases has been noticed.Dr Sinha said there are sufficient number of doctors, besides there is no shortage of medicines used in the treatment of AES and JE.Giving further details, Dr M Haque, vector-borne disease control officer, said block-level training programmes are being conducted for AES control and management. Besides health workers, schoolteachers, Asha workers, social activists and village-level medical service providers are also being trained, he said.He said a pilot project for mass immunisation against AES was launched in the district a few years back and the results have been very encouraging. Immunisation for children in the 9-12 months and 16-24 month age groups is being done at the mass level.Dr Haque said preventive measures are also being taken to deal with heatstroke-related ailments. He said provision for coolers, air conditioners and ice packs etc are being made at the primary health centres.