Citizens of Kolkata could soon get oral check-up done in their wards for free. The Kolkata Municipal Corporation is mulling a plan to start dental screening at its health centres soon.
According to the member-mayor-in-council for the Health wing of KMC, Atin Ghosh, the dental screening facility is being planned in all the primary health centres of the municipal corporation. Along with screening facilities for dental treatment would also be provided at the health centres run by the civic body. Apart from dental screening and treatment, the municipal corporation is also putting efforts to expand eye check up and treatment services across wards. Presently, the services are available in 14 wards. The KMC is said to have set up 11 vision centres in the city by collaborating with two NGOs.
Notably, a demand for a dialysis facility by the KMC came up during the recent Budget Session at the House last week. For dialysis, the facility can be provided at tertiary health service units. According to the deputy mayor, often patients have chances of cardiac arrest during dialysis. In such a situation, the patient immediately needs to be shifted to a tertiary care unit. Presently, such a facility can be provided at the mayor’s clinic which is attached to SSKM. For KMC primary healthcare services are a priority.
The municipal corporation is also working on providing services for rare diseases. For this, treatment facilities are being provided at 10 health centres: 3, 11, 52, 66, 29, 75, 76, 85, 139 and 140. The KMC, along with Organisation of Rare Disease India and Rare Warriors of Bengal Association launched a Rare Disease Screening Centre. Over the past year, more than 50 ASHA workers and 20 medical officers were trained to conduct rare disease screening at the community level. A questionnaire is being given to the households through which data is collected on rare diseases. The questionnaire generates a score that helps determine the risk of rare diseases in families.