It took various reports in the Herald, the allegations made by the opposition Congress and the charges raised by the NGO GenNext to awaken the government to the mismanagement at Goa Medical College and Hospital and the poor quality of services at the government-run tertiary hospital. It is only when the heat from all sides got too much that the government decided to act. Not only will a one-man committee now probe into the allegations made by the Opposition and the NGO, but GMC will also have an administrator so that the hospital’s functioning can be streamlined and the doctors are not burdened by administrative duties thereby improving the delivery of healthcare at the hospital. The Minister for Health may have refuted the allegations and charges of shortcomings in the GMC, the facts will, however, be confirmed once the committee completes its probe and produces it report.
Over the past four years the government has spent Rs 169.03 cr on GMC and the dental college but there has been little improvement in the conditions. This is money that could have built a new hospital, but the results in GMC in terms of services cannot even be seen. That hasn’t stopped the government from planning on increasing the infrastructure. Just recently the government announced a new super specialty block at GMC with various medical services. While this is welcome, as the State does need super specialty services, what is also important is to have the basics in place, and water is one of them.
The hospital caters not just to the entire State of Goa, but also to the surrounding districts of the neighbouring States. Hundreds of patients pass through its doors daily, yet there are some abject shortcomings at the hospital, among them is lack of regular supply of water, which for a hospital could be disastrous. The government is now considering digging bore wells to meet the hospital’s water needs, while also claiming that there is wastage of water by visitors to the hospital. If there is wastage of water this has to be plugged, rather than digging bore wells that will further deplete the groundwater. But it is not just water, patients have complained of a lack of medicines and being made to buy them from outside. There is much that needs to be done to make GMC a healthy hospital.
But, it is not enough for the government to improve facilities at the GMC, efforts have to be made to reduce the pressure of patients at the hospital. To achieve this, the government has to also focus on the district hospitals and the urban and primary health centres across the State. The GMC is, to repeat, a tertiary hospital and should not be dealing with the regular coughs, colds and the common flu. These, and various other ailments have to be dealt with at the health centres and the patients treated and cured at these centres. The primary health centres have to be equipped to not just provide first aid and elementary treatment but also to deal with every disease and ailment. Only major cases and those requiring surgery should be referred to the district hospitals. In turn the district hospitals should be equipped to handle the regular surgeries and also treat major ailments. They should refer to the GMC only those cases that require the expertise of the staff of the teaching facility.
GMC, the district hospital and the health centres, all are in dire need of some medicine to regain their health. It is up to the government to make the changes in the sector that will improve the conditions in the hospitals and improve the delivery of healthcare.
