Normal OPD, OT to re-open soon at RIMS, JNIMS; at SHRI from today

By Our Staff Reporter
IMPHAL, Dec 22: With the COVID-19 graph falling sharply in the State, normal OPD service and surgical operations would be resumed soon at RIMS.
The exact date is however yet to be decided.
Presently, only emergency cases are treated at the hospital.
RIMS Director Prof A Santa told The Sangai Express that normal OPD service as well as normal operations would be resumed within the next two/three days.
He said that hospital beds are being cleaned and sanitized.
All the wards which are currently used as COVID-19 wards would be transformed as normal wards except the surgery ward.
While the surgery ward would be used as COVID-19 for some more time, patients requiring hospitalisation in the surgery ward would be divided among different wards, said the RIMS Director.
Normal treatment of psychiatric patients resumed two/three months after flu clinic was separated from the psychiatric ward. Likewise, normal PMR and radio therapy treatments have resumed, he said.
As there is an instruction to reserve around 200 beds for COVID-19 patients, arrangements to keep aside these beds have been occupying a lot of space, Prof Santa said.
“Earlier, we were thinking about resuming normal OPD service and normal operations only after arrival of COVID vaccine but we would not wait for COVID vaccine”, he said.
A database of around 3500 doctors, staff and students of RIMS has been prepared and sent to the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare for COVID vaccination in the first phase, he said.  
OPD service and the Operation Theatres will also open from the second week of January at JNIMS, said sources.
Shija Hospitals too has notified that routine OPD for all walk-in patients will resume from December 23.
Prior appointment through Shija Helpline will no longer be needed for new as well as follow up OPD consultations. Further Covid test will not be made compulsory for walk-in OPD patients.  However, patients and patient parties must follow the Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for Covid-19 issued by the Directorate of Health Services.