While Jammu and Kashmir government has posted a large number of doctors and paramedical staff on the Amarnath Yatra duty, this year a number of doctors from different states have also joined them.
바카라This year we see positive change as a good number of doctors from outside J&K have joined us,바카라 said a doctor posted in Baltal area. He said previously also doctors from outside used to join J&K health department to provide medical help to the pilgrims. 바카라But this year their numbers have gone up. I saw doctors from AIIMS, Pondicherry, Punjab and other areas working with us,바카라 he added.
However, doctors complain that pilgrims don바카라t follow the health advisories leading to complications. 바카라We guide them. We boost their morale. But most of them are in a hurry to take a trek. Some of them, who are diabetic and hypertensive, don바카라t take medicine during pilgrimage which complicates their health-related issues,바카라 says a doctor. The doctors say the pilgrimage don바카라t acclimatize themselves to the weather conditions and rush to the mountains leading to breathlessness.
The facilities that the state government and health department have provided to the pilgrims include critical care, general surgery, orthopaedics, high altitude emergency, laboratory services, hyperbaric oxygen chamber, portable oxygen concentrators, automated CPR machines, defibrillators, cardiac monitors and transport ventilator to name the few.
As the Amarnath shrine is situated at an altitude of 13,500 feet above sea level, the high altitude trek to the shrine involves exposure to extreme cold, low humidity, increased ultraviolet radiations and reduced air pressure, many yatris face respiratory and other related medical problems.
The pilgrims have to trek a distance of 32 km from Chandanwari (Pahalgam route) and 14 km from Baltal to reach the Amarnath shrine.
In July 2012, the Supreme Court constituted Special High Powered Committee (SHPC) cited non-acclimatization as one of the reasons responsible for High Altitude Sickness that leads to deaths during the yatra. It also cited religious traditions like devotees taking an ice-cold water bath in the morning and then taking a trek with empty stomach responsible for the deaths. The SHPC had made more than 20 recommendations including that all pilgrims should furnish Compulsory Health Certificates while seeking registration for the pilgrimage and no one below the age of 13 years or above the age of 75 years and no lady with 6 week바카라s pregnancy should be allowed to undertake the yatra. However, official sources say the guidelines are being violated. 바카라Serious issues for us that they don바카라t take medicine for diabetes or hypertension,바카라 said a doctor.
바카라Our staff are fully trained to handle medical emergencies like AMS, HAPE & HACE that frequently occur on such expeditions바카라 said Dr. Arshad Rafi, the officer-in-charge of the yatra.