Support to Neonatal Intensive Care Unit at Mahamodara

An outbreak of neonatal infection (Klebsiella pneunonia) was reported in the Mahamodara hospital which is a maternity hospital in the Southern province in Galle.  This maternity hospital has a large catchment area and caters to approximately 10,000 deliveries a year.  It was affected by the Tsunami in 2004 and received

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February 2, 2023 - 12:00 am

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Neonatal Intensive Care Unit at Mahamodara   View map

An outbreak of neonatal infection (Klebsiella pneunonia) was reported in the Mahamodara hospital which is a maternity hospital in the Southern province in Galle.  This maternity hospital has a large catchment area and caters to approximately 10,000 deliveries a year.  It was affected by the Tsunami in 2004 and received philanthropic support by Dr Helmut Koll from Germany and the hospital is to be relocated in the new building at Karapitiya Teaching hospital.  The shifting has taken a long time and Mahamodara hospital does not qualify for major improvements for its maintenance partly due to it being shifted and now because of economic hardships faced.

A detailed inspection was carried out by Dr Susie Perera, the College President, Members of the council,  with the clinical team at Mahamodara , including the hospital Director and team.  The teams also visited the new building.

Observations made:

  1. The Medical gas system has not been improved and the distribution system is unsafe
  2. the unsafe medical gas system has led to neonatal ventilators breaking down.

It is not safe to install new ventilators without doing the basic maintenance work for the medical gas system.  Lack of funds has led to this not being repaired

  1. Basic infection control practices cannot be followed for the neonates in the NICU due to lack of consumables and these have to be shared, leading to cross infection.
  2. Although shifting of the unit to Karapitiya is due, the new place has still incomplete works (CSSD, Kitchen, Laundry and the residential arrangements for staff needs to be sorted out). In this situation, the shifting is likely to take over one year. It is prudent that urgent support has to be extended to Mahamodara hospital to rectify the medical gas system and repairs to the neonatal ventilators and to purchase at least some of the urgent consumables that should be used on ‘one item one baby policy’.

A detailed request was sent by Dr. Dilani Dehigama – Neonatalogist, Mahamodara Hospital.mA detailed discussion of the need took place with Council Members and Dr Saman Kumara, Neonatologist CSHW was able to obtain urgent support through philanthropic contribution to urgently rectify the medical gas system.

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