Team Herald
PANJIM: Health Minister Vishwajit Rane on Saturday announced that Goa is the first State in the country to launch I-Stat, a point of care testing system, right at the sub-health centre level.
Rane said that after training of auxiliary nursing midwife (ANMs) and multi-purpose health workers (MPHWs), the blood diagnostic facility would be made available at the sub-health centre level, due to which people will not have to travel to test their blood samples.
“In the next 30 days, our MoU will be in place and our ANMs and MPHWs will be trained in order to take the testing at sub health centres. The sub health centre level itself has 28 parameters of blood and the rural people won’t have to go to the PHC or RMD for their blood analysis.”
“Setting our benchmark higher in the health sector in Goa and by being the first State in the country to start an I-Stat facility,” Minister said.
Health department had last year signed a memorandum of understanding with Colorcon for sponsoring 10 Abbott-manufactured I-Stat systems, with blood results to be out in two minutes.
