In view of the mysterious pneumonia outbreak in China, several states in India are overhauling their medical infrastructure.
China has been seeing a spike in cases of respiratory illnesses among children, forcing the closure of schools in the northern part of the country. On Sunday, China’s National Health Commission spokesperson Mi Feng had said that the surge in acute respiratory illnesses was linked to the simultaneous circulation of several kinds of pathogens, most prominently influenza.
The spike became a global issue after the World Health Organization prodded China for more information about the outbreak.
Last week, the Centre had asked all states and Union Territories to review hospital preparedness, saying that the health ministry is closely monitoring the rise of respiratory illness cases in China among children.
As a matter of abundant caution, also because of the ongoing influenza and winter season, the ministry had asked the states to check their hospital preparedness measures such as hospital beds, drugs and vaccines for influenza, medical oxygen, antibiotics, PPE etc.