TN Adds More Hospitals for Kids with Diabetes

Summary: The Tamil Nadu government plans to enhance healthcare facilities for children affected with Type 1 diabetes in all government hospitals in the state.

In 2008, Late M. Karunanidhi, the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, launched a healthcare scheme for treating children with Type 1 Diabetes. As of date, 5,064 children are undergoing treatment under this scheme.

Current scenario

Presently, treatment of children with type 1 diabetes is being carried out at seven district hospitals in the state of Tamil Nadu, i.e. Chennai, Thanjavur, Salem, Coimbatore, Tirunelveli, Dharmapuri and Tiruchirappalli.

The enhancement

The state government has planned to expand the scheme to Tiruvarur, Namakkal and Chidambaram government hospitals to benefit more children ailing from the disease. This scheme will gradually be implemented across all government-run hospitals in the state.

The statistics

58.53 lakh patients in Tamil Nadu suffer from diabetes, while 54.75 lakh patients suffer from both diabetes and high blood pressure
1.13 crore patients are undergoing treatment in the state
45,000 patients with diabetic foot disease are being treated in the state
The number of deaths from non-communicable diseases (16,000 to 17,000 annually) has marginally decreased due to measures undertaken by the state government.

The healthcare schemes

The State Government has already implemented various healthcare schemes for its citizens.

‘Makallai thedi maruthuvan’ scheme: it provides doorstep medical services to the patients.
‘Paadham padhukaapom’ (save the foot) scheme: This scheme was initiated in July 2024 to treat patients with early diabetes detection and diabetic foot complications.

The State Government aims to enhance awareness through various schemes to prevent fatalities arising due to non-communicable diseases.

Conclusion

The State Government is taking commendable steps for the healthcare of its citizens. This will aid in the treatment of the patients, especially those who cannot afford expensive state-of-the-art healthcare facilities.

Inputs from various media sources.