Varanasi: In a major boost to maternal and newborn healthcare services, Varanasi has received a significant gift. South city MLA and former minister Neelkanth Tiwari on Sunday laid the foundation stone of Varanasi’s first MSNCU (Maternal Sick Newborn Care Unit) building at the Govt District Women’s Hospital in Kabirchaura. This state-of-the-art health unit, to be built at a cost of approximately Rs 2.55 crore, will become a new centre of modern medical services for poor women and newborn infants.During the foundation stone laying ceremony, Tiwari said that the proposed building will have 24 beds each for mothers and their newborn infants. The construction of this unit will enable mothers battling serious health complications post-delivery and sick newborns to receive coordinated treatment at a single location. He said that until now, premature or critically ill newborns had to be separated from their mothers and sent to other hospitals for treatment, causing both physical and mental distress to both mother and child. However, after this unit becomes operational, premature and weak infants will be able to receive better medical care while remaining in contact with their mothers.Tiwari said that this unit will be equipped with state-of-the-art technology and trained medical staff. Advanced facilities such as minimally invasive ventilation, phototherapy, warmers, and incubators will be available here. He said that a large number of deliveries take place daily at the women’s hospital, and patients also arrive in large numbers from surrounding districts. In such a scenario, the launch of this unit will reduce the number of cases being referred to BHU and other major hospitals. This unit will play a key role in reducing the neonatal mortality rate. He said that after Ghaziabad, this will be Uttar Pradesh‘s second state-of-the-art MSNCU, and the target has been set to complete its construction within the next four months.
