CVTS dept at Sassoon to get major facelift

An additional heart lung machine will be installed,says Jhamkar while Inamdar said that various equipments like ventilators,anaesthesia machine,cardiac monitors ,camera and audio visual system will also be included. “This is such a huge set up that we had no option but to shut the department for a month or so,”says Inamdar.

While an approximate 25 surgeries are conducted on a monthly basis,once the department is renovated,we will be equipped to conduct nearly 60 surgeries,says Inamdar. The patients are mixed lot and while 40 per cent avail of treatment under the Jeevandayi yojana,20 per cent of them seek medical treatment under the Employees State Insurance Scheme (ESIS).

A bypass surgery costs Rs 65,000,a single valve replacement around 90,000,a double valve replacement Rs 1.20 lakh and congenital heart surgery around 65,000. In private hospitals,these surgeries are nearly double the cost of what is being charged at Sassoon hospital.

Those patients who can afford to pay are being recommended to avail of treatment at other hospitals while patients under the Jeevandayi Yojana are being sent to such hospitals like Ruby and Deendayal hospital.

They are also being recommended to take treatment from government hospitals in Mumbai,says Jhamkar. This is a temporary measure and such patients who do not require emergency treatment are asked to wait for a while.