With a growing number of Alzheimer’s patients in the state, health minister Dr. Deepak Sawant has decided to open ‘Memory Clinics’ at each district hospital to treat them. The health department will also start day-care centres for such patients at Mumbai, Pune, Thane, Nagpur, Nashik, and Sindhudurg.
A meeting in this regard was held on Monday helmed by Dr. Sawant where the issue of Alzheimer’s patients was discussed. The officials informed the minister that out of an average 1,400 patients coming to government-run hospitals every day for a check-up, six to seven were patients with Alzheimer’s disease. The officials said that these patients did not seek treatment for fear of social stigma. Hence, the state government should have its own centres to treat such patients, they said.
An official from the health department said memory clinics are expected to have early detection of Alzheimer’s patients and treat them early. Various tests can be conducted on these patients to diagnose the cause and they would be treated accordingly. The official pointed out that government-run hospitals do not have this facility everywhere, especially in the rural areas.
The day-care centres will treat patients apart from teaching family members and relatives how to deal with these patients. The government would start Alzheimer’s awareness programmes for school students included.
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