• The organisation is already preparing one of its centres in Ananthapuramu town for facilitating institutional deliveries.
• RDT Mycobacteriology laboratory is functioning as a COVID-19 testing centre since 12th April.

Rural Development Trust’s Bathalapalli Hospital is one of the first centres in the district of Ananthapuramu to be designated as a COVID-19 Hospital by the District Collector, Sri Gandham Chandrudu. For this purpose RDT will make all its medical resources, amenities, facilities as well as manpower available to fight the COVID-19 pandemic.

After the announcement all services in Bathalapalli have been suspended and all the buildings of the hospital complex will be used only for COVID-19 patients, except the Care and Support Centre.  The organisation is currently preparing one of its centres in Ananthapuramu town area for facilitating institutional deliveries and other obstetrics services.

This Goverment notice came after the announcement on Sunday that RDT Mycobacteriology Laboratory, used until then for testing drug-resistant tuberculosis (TB), would start functioning as a COVID-19 testing centre. AP Government has provided the required material as well as trainings for staff.

Doctors and nurses are being trained and new materials are being acquired (PPE, N95 Masks, surgical gowns, coveralls, facial shield). Some personal protection for emergency purpose is being prepared with the material available.

All non essential services in Kalyandurg and Kanekal Hospitals remain postponed due to the national lockdown and as per the government orders. These centres have also established triage points in the premises of the Hospitals to inform the population of the new measures taken. Anyone with symptoms is at the moment asked to isolate himself/herself and to call the Government help lines. Any person arriving at the Hospital with fever is considered as COVID-19, until proved otherwise.

Text: Aina Valldaura