Pulwama, Jul 16 : Authorities in South Kashmir’s Pulwama district are optimistic about starting work on the 50-bedded Critical Care Block (CCB), whose foundation stone was virtually laid by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in February 2024.
The Medical Superintendent (MS) of District Hospital (DH) Pulwama, Dr. Abdul Gani Dar, informed Rising Kashmir that construction is expected to commence by the last week of July 2024.
Dr. Dar said that the current casualty facility at the district hospital, established 15-20 years ago, has a capacity of around 20 beds and often remains congested.
He stressed the need for improvement and mentioned that the Government of India has announced the construction of Critical Care Blocks in hospitals with high patient footfall.
The new CCB for Pulwama will be located adjacent to the existing district hospital.
“We have identified the land and conducted soil testing. The work on the construction will start soon,” Dr. Dar said.
He added that the 50-bed CCB will handle and cater to emergencies across different specialties. Officials revealed that this project is part of the Emergency Response and Health System Preparedness Package (ECRP) approved by the Government of India.
Officials believe that the establishment of the CCB will significantly enhance the hospital’s capacity to manage patients needing critical care.
Notably, District Hospital Pulwama registers the highest number of patients in its Outpatient Department (OPD) daily in Kashmir.
In addition to the new CCB, Dr. Dar revealed plans to upgrade the hospital’s blood bank.
“We are starting a blood component separation facility in our hospital,” he said, noting that the laboratory for this service has already been established and some equipment is already in place.
“We require some minor equipment to start this facility,” he added.
He said that once operational, this facility will be available at District Hospital Pulwama, following similar services at SKIMS and SMHS.
The Medical Superintendent revealed that the hospital achieved a great feat after it’s ICTC ( Integrated Counselling and Testing Centre) laboratory was accredited by National Accreditation Board for Testing and Calibration Laboratories ( NABL).
“This is only the second district hospital in the Union Territory to get NABL accreditation,” he said, adding that this demonstrates the efficacy with which tests are being conducted in the Laboratory.
