After the initial reluctance, private hospitals in Pune have now come around and have agreed to begin treating swine flu patients. The Association of Hospitals in Pune had earlier urged the district collector to provide them with a civic hospital exclusively for treating swine flu patients. In addition, five military hospitals have been identified and have been kept ready to treat such patients in case of an emergency.
?The administration held individual meetings with the managements of these hospitals and a collective meeting with them as well and 16 hospitals that have been certified by the Directorate of Medical Education and Research have agreed to begin screening H1N1 patients at their Out Patient Departments from tomorrow,? district collector, Pune, said.