Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, Mar 12: Jammu and Kashmir got its first palliative care centre for cancer and terminally ill patients suffering from non-communicable diseases, who earlier had to travel to Delhi or Chandigarh for treatment.
Established at Government Hospital Gandhi Nagar here under the national palliative care programme, the centre was inaugurated by Principal Secretary Health and Medical Education Atul Dulloo.
It has been set up under the national palliative care programme by AIIMS, New Delhi in collaboration with the Union health ministry and the Asia Pacific Hospice Palliative Care Network (APHN), Singapore, he added.
“It is a major development in the health sector as the patients, who otherwise had to go to AIIMS New Delhi or PGI Chandigarh for the facility, will get the treatment here,” Incharge Doctor, Pain and Palliative Care, Rohit Lahori said.
He said six patients suffering from end-stage cancer were admitted in the specially set up 10-bed ward under the palliative care programme while 15 patients were provided OPD services.
“Palliative care is a national health programme which was started in 2016 across the country. Presently, we only have a full-fledged department functional in AIIMS New Delhi and PGI Chandigarh and now we have got the one here, which is the the first in the state,” Lahori said.
A pain specialist, Lahori said he along with two staff nurses underwent the first round of the training at AIIMS New Delhi which would be directly monitoring and supervising the treatment of the patients in the special ward.
Lahori said the interventional pain clinic began at Gandhi Nagar hospital on September 18, 2016 and over 425 intervention procedures for pain including cancer pains have been performed till date.
Over 5600 Patients have also been provided with OPD services of pain clinic, he said.
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