Health Minister Ma. Subramanian (second right) inspecting the Mother – Newborn Care Unit at the Coimbatore Medical College Hospital after inaugurating the facility on Sunday.
| Photo Credit: S. SIVA SARAVANAN
Health Minister Ma. Subramanian on Sunday inaugurated a Mother – Newborn Care Unit (MNCU) and an Assisted Reproductive Technology (ART) centre at the Coimbatore Medical College Hospital (CMCH).
The MNCU built at a cost of ₹86 lakh has 10 beds for mothers with attached facilities for newborns. This will ensure treatment of ailing postnatal mothers or newborns within the same space, without separating them.
The Minister said that the ART centre that has come up at the tertiary level government hospital at a cost of ₹16.3 lakh will help couples from poor economic backgrounds undergo in vitro fertilization (IVF) treatment, which in private facilities cost ₹10 to ₹12 lakh. Already such centres have come up at the Institute of Obstetrics and Gynaecology in Egmore and the Government Mohan Kumaramangalam Medical College Hospital, Salem, he said.
Mr. Subramanian said that the government, as announced earlier, has launched provision of somatrogon, a medication for growth hormone deficiency in children, at a cost of ₹13.28 crore. At a time, each beneficiary will be given the medication, which comes as a disposable injection pen, for five weeks that cost around ₹60,000. The medical will continue as prescribed by doctors.
The Minister also inaugurated an Emergency Care and Recovery Centre (ECRC) at the hospital, which is a 15-bedded facility for the care and treatment of homeless persons and those who are found on streets, requiring immediate medical attention. He said 16 ECRCs are functioning across the State with the support of non-governmental organisations.
He also distributed free spectacles to 50 persons aged above 50, who underwent eye check-up camps organised by the district administration in collaboration with Rotary International at Thondamuthur, Madukkarai, Negamam, Karamadai, Sarkarsamakulam, Sulthanpet, Valparai, Periyanaickenpalayam and Annur.
Secretary of Health and Family Welfare Department P. Senthil Kumar, Coimbatore District Collector Pavankumar G. Giriyappanavar, Coimbatore MP Ganapathy P. Rajkumar, Pollachi MP K. Eswarasamy, Mayor K. Ranganayaki, Corporation Commissioner M. Sivaguru Prabakaran and CMCH Dean A. Nirmala were present.
On Sunday morning, the Minister trekked to a few tribal settlements near Kovai Courtallam and got feedback from residents on the reach of Makkalai Thedi Maruthuvam scheme. He also awarded degrees to medical students in the graduation ceremonies held at Coimbatore Medical College and the Government Medical College and ESI Hospital on Sunday.
Published – June 15, 2025 08:12 pm IST