PORVORIM: The Goa government has admitted that Hospicio Hospital in South Goa faces shortage of staff including doctors and nurses, as well as equipments. Health Minister Vishwajit Rane has, however, assured to fill the vacuum within the shortest period.
“We have already initiated exercise to pull out additional and surplus doctors from various other government facilities and post them at the district hospital,” he told the House during the Question Hour on Friday. Rane also conceded that the gynaecology and paediatric sections are reeling under staff shortage. “We have got some additional doctors and nurses (for the hospital), which is more than the sanctioned strength. We are in the process of recruiting more doctors,” he assured.
In his reply, the minister also informed that the new South District Hospital in Margao would be completed in May 2018. “We all want new hospital to get ready. It is proposed to complete somewhere in May 2018 but till then we are ensuring that you have additional doctors at the existing facility,” he stated in response to a question by Congress legislator Digambar Kamat on lack of facilities at Hospicio Hospital.
As per the written reply, the total sanctioned strength of Medical Officers/Medical Consultants/Nurses in Hospicio Hospital, Margao is 235 while the present strength of medical officers is 28, medical consultants 31, ward sisters 13, staff nurses 124, ward sisters deployed is 01, staff sisters deployed are 11, and contract staff nurses are 30. The total comes to 238, which is three more than the sanctioned strength.
Rane said the government is ensuring that referral from district hospital to Goa Medical College (GMC) is minimal. “We don’t want people to move from the district hospital and dumped in GMC,” he commented.
On the complaints about dirty bedsheets in Hospicio, Rane said the State government is working on having a centralised laundry for all the government run hospitals.
“There will a centralised laundry. We will be regularly sending all the bedsheets to the centralised laundry. We are having it so that it can be on par with any other laundry,” he said adding, “Not only the bedsheets but also the gowns worn by the patients will be clean.”
The bedsheets from the Hospicio are sent to the GMC for cleaning on a daily basis, unlike in the past when these would be washed just once a week.
“There is sufficient stock of linen at Hospicio Hospital. However, since the dirty linen is sent to GMC for washing, clean linen is not received regularly on time due to technical problems at the GMC Laundry. Due to this, there is a chronic shortage of linen at Hospicio Hospital, Margao,” he said.
The minister also admitted shortage of beds stating, “Some departments (have) seasonal shortage of beds such as in Medicine, paediatric and gynaecology.”
Kamat brought to the notice of the House the pitiable situation that two beds are joined, which is shared by three women and their newborns. A new CT Scan machine will be made available by August-end.
