Bengaluru: Labour Department to introduce 100 mobile medical units for construction workers

Bengaluru: The Labour Department will soon introduce 100 hi-tech Mobile Medical Units (MMU) to provide on-field medical care to construction workers.

Tenders have been called to supply the vehicles, provide necessary medical equipment and ensure medical treatment. DH has learnt that three organisations have got the tender.

While each district will approximately get 3 ambulances, bigger districts may get a little more. Each of these ambulances will have specialised medical teams comprising MBBS doctors, will include 25 pieces of medical equipment and 32 medical tests can be conducted.

In case of emergencies, these ambulances will transport the patients to nearby hospitals while providing adequate treatment en route and ensuring that they get treatment/surgeries through cashless mode.

The 25 equipment pieces will include a body impedance analyser, blood pressure monitor, thermometre, digital stethoscope, hemoglobin metre + WBC, urine analyser, document scanner, android tablet and so on.

The 32 medical tests that can be conducted in the ambulance include a detailed physical test, basic vitals test (weight, height, BP, pulse, temperature, BMI), lung function test, HIV, Dengue, Chikungunya, urine pregnancy test and so on.

Dependents of construction workers are also eligible to avail the benefits. The patients should show their Ayushman Bharat (ABHA) cards to avail of the treatment.

Announced during the 2022-23 budget, the project got administrative approval in December 2022 after a Cabinet meeting of the Basavaraj Bommai-led BJP
government.

These measures will lead to greater productivity as a healthy workforce is more efficient and better equipped to handle the physical demands of construction work, a note by the department said.