Nawaloka Hospital opens specialist poisons unit

There are over a hundred thousand people admitted annually to government hospitals locally showing symptoms of poisoning. Most recently, a significant number have sought treatment at private sector institutions such as Nawaloka Hospital. This is especially so in major cities.

To meet this urgent national need, Nawaloka Hospital has now set up a specialist poisons treatment unit, designated as the Nawaloka Hospital Poisons Unit. It is the first-of-its-kind in the the private health care sector in Sri Lanka.

And, most importantly, it will have the expertise and capabilities to diagnose and treat patients with a history of poisoning, as well as drug overdoses and snake bites, and even alcoholic and narcotic (drug) addictions. In addition, patients with allergies and anaphylaxis can also be admitted to, or treated at, this unit.

Further, the Nawaloka Hospital Poisons Unit uses the services of a specialist team of highly experienced medical consultants, including all the necessary antidotes and drugs to treat poisoned or envenomed patients. At the same time, this team will also be backed-up by Nawaloka Hospital's state-of-the-art medical facilities and medical and surgical intensive care units. Available 24 hours-a-day to manage patient needs, the specialist poisons team will also include the services of a psychologist or psychiatrist, who will be on hand to look into social and psychological aspects.

With more than 400 beds and 600 visiting medical consultants, Nawaloka Hospital is the largest local private hospital in a single location, which is also the country's first fully fledged private healthcare institution, opened in 1985 with only 100 beds.

The hospital was responsible for the well-being of over 1.5 million patients in total during the 2011/2012 period, during which it also carried out close to 15,000 surgeries.