- The Hospital Launches its ‘Six-Stage Ultra Safety Program’ against Covid-19 Infection
- Only Hospital in India to produce N-95 masks in-house
- Only Hospital in Tamil Nadu to use three different advanced technologies: RT-PCR, TruNAAT, and CB NAAT for COVID-19 testing
Madurai, 14 August , 2020: By rolling out what it calls the ‘Six-Stage Ultra Safety Program’ that ensures contactless detection of potential carriers of the Covid-19 virus, 100% sterilization of indoors, and minimal physical contact while providing healthcare services, Meenakshi Mission Hospital and Research Centre, Madurai, has become perhaps the safest hospital in India to offer the highest possible protection to its patients, visitors, and staff, against Covid-19 infection.
Currently, Meenakshi Mission Hospital is also the only hospital in the country to produce N-95 masks on its own – and to use three different advanced technologies for COVID-19 testing, namely: Reverse Transcription Polymerase Chain Reaction (RT-PCR), True Nucleic Acid Amplification Test (Tru NAAT), and Cartridge Based Nucleic Acid Amplification Test (CB NAAT).
The hospital has also come up with an ingenious innovation, named Tanjore Air Barrier Technique (TABT), to securely deliver compressed medical grade air to healthcare professionals in the operation theatres through a hood. Its Bluetooth Stethoscope, another novel in-house design, lets physicians listen to internal organs of the patients without touching a stethoscope – and even when the patient is seated in another room.
Commenting about the ‘Six-stage ultra-safety program’, Dr. S. Gurushankar, Chairman, Meenakshi Mission Hospital, Madurai, said, “Essentially, the program is all about creating redundant layers of protection against Covid-19 infection, so that the in-patients and outpatients who need ongoing treatment for various other ailments can avail – and our doctors, paramedical and administrative staff can render – necessary healthcare services without any fear of Covid-19 infection.”
The ‘Six-stage ultra-safety program’ makes optimal use of AI and robotics for contactless detection of symptoms in our visitors, sterilization of indoors, as well as contactless checkup, and treatment, wherever it is possible and desirable.
The first stage of protection features Smart Security. It deploys security personnel, who man the entrance of the hospital, to detect potential carriers of the virus. They wear smart infrared AI helmets to check the temperature of the visitors remotely. The second stage protection comes from the Smart Fever Clinic that functions at the reception area of the hospital. Armed with thermal infrared guns, the hospital staff check the temperature of the visitors, and provide identity tags to each visitor after ensuring that they have sanitized their hands and worn N-95 masks.
The third stage protection features Smart Thermal Surveillance Cameras that continuously and remotely checks the temperature of everyone in the premises, round the clock. The fourth stage of ultra-safety program comes from Advanced COVID-19 Testing Equipment using which Covid-19 testing is done to patients and visitors using three different advanced technologies:
RT-PCR, Tru NAAT, and CB NAAT.
The fifth stage protection deploys robots that’s on the move 24X7 spraying disinfectant and sterilizing every corner of the hospital to ensure that frequently touched surfaces are sanitized at all times. The sixth and the final stage of protection presses into service robots to carry food and medicines to patients right to their rooms.
The hospital also uses Bluetooth Stethoscope for listening to the sounds of internal organs, and TABT for the supply of contamination-free oxygen to healthcare professionals and patients in the operation theatres.
Dr. Gurushankar said that the hospital had imported the robots and smart gadgets as soon as the lockdown was first announced in March. “Then there was not a single case of infection in Madurai. But we expected that the pandemic would eventually hit Madurai, for that matter, all parts of the country. There was no guarantee that what happened in Italy and the US would not happen in India. Hence, we used the lead time of two-three months for importing and installing the systems, and training the staff,” he said. The doctor’s team at the Meenakshi Mission Hospital, Thanjavur designed TABT and Bluetooth Stethoscope a few months earlier.
The Six-Stage Ultra Safety Program at Meenakshi Mission is thus setting a standard in the country in ensuring continuity of healthcare services during the Covid-19 pandemic in a stress-free and smart environment.
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