ECMO treatment for critical COVID patients at SCB Hospital soon

Cuttack: Augmenting healthcare infrastructure in Odisha, the State Government has decided to bring six ECMO machines highly required for critical patients suffering from lung ailment caused by COVID-19 infection.

The expensive ECMO treatment will be available at the SCB Medical College & Hospital, Cuttack, to save the critically ill patients from COVID-19.

In first phase, six extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) machines will be installed at the State’s premier medical institution.

In this regard, Odisha State Medical Corporation (OSMC) has formed a six-member technical committee comprising DMET Director Dr. CBK Mohanty and Dr. Jayant Kumar Panda (HoD of Medicine Department, SCB) as members among others.

The costly medical equipment will be installed at the Cardiothoracic and Vascular Surgery (CTVS) Department of the SCB Medical College & Hospital.

Source said that the SCB authorities have submitted a report to the State Health & Family Welfare Department regarding requirement of staff and infrastructure for operation of ECMO machines at the hospital. As there are six ICUs at the CTVS Department in SCB, the machines will be brought to the SCB in first phase.

In the pandemic, there is huge requirement of ECMO treatment especially for critical COVID patients suffering from lung ailment. As the treatment is expensive and not available in state-run hospitals in Odisha, it has become more challenging for doctors to save lives from COVID-19.

“Earlier, the ECMO treatment was very limited. But, the need for the machines has increased more due to COVID-19 in its second wave. We are making arrangements to install 6 machines at the SCB for critical COVID patients,” said Dr. CBK Mohanty today.