Healthcare in Jammu

Prof. Ravinder Chadha
This is in continuation to my previous article on the healthcare scenario in Jammu hospitals and ways to overcome the increasing pressure of patients in the casuality wards of GMC and SMGS hospitals. Besides consolidation of infrastructural facilities in the existing hospitals there are other grey areas which need to be taken care of to change the narrative of healthcare in Jammu. Firstly, sufficient measures are required to be taken to complete the recruitment process of doctors and other paramedical staff to minimize the doctors patients disproportionate ratio. The authorities seem to be quite collous and casual on this front, moving at a very slow pace for unanswerable reasons, thus making system unmanageable. A quick action team of administration including people who have to take the decisions as well as people who have to provide services and facilities to public would be constituted to give their vital suggestions for upgrading the medical facilities in Jammu. Pressure must be mounted on Public Service Commission and other concerning agencies to accelerate the recruitment process to avoid any inconvenience being caused to public for their casual approach in this matter. Despite investing heavy amount on producing super specialists and competent doctors, we are unable to utilize their services by providing them employment in public sector, thus compelling them to render their services elsewhere in the private sector.
The administration need to organize orientation/refresher courses on ethical, moral and skill improvement topics to make our doctors more realistic competent and selfless practitioners serving the humanity.
The issue of Swachta which has occupied center stage at the national level, is getting due attention in our hospitals. No doubt, this is a conscientious issue where both public and administration are to equally contribute, possibly through enough awareness campaign. Audio visual tapes are needed to be displayed at appropriate corners of the hospitals to educate the people about vital and significant role of cleanliness in containing infections and spread of malaria, viral and other infectious diseases.
Administration ought to gear up its Department of Public and Works to focus on removing construction errors, causing inconvenience to the patients and public, for example the ground floor of Radiology Department gets flooded during rainy season.
Dumping of garbage, plasters, syringes and other wastes at the backside of hospitals not only give a shabby look but also provide fertile ground to mosquitos and other viruses.
Having specialists in all major disciplines sub-urban hospitals can provide health care to all category of patients except extreme critical cases. Referring less critical cases to GMC shows the non professional approach and incompetence of specialists serving in these hospitals.
Administration team may be constituted to ensure that doctors serving in sub-urban hospitals stay in their allotted quarters at night and unnecessarily do not refer patient to GMC and overburden it.
Government hospitals are still affordable life line for poor patients hailing from both rural and urban areas, these need to be adequately funded by Governments to ensure free or cost effective health care to fulfil their social contract with every Jammuite. Doctors must be handsomely paid to be fully devoted to their duties without getting lured by private sector. The administration need to keep its hands away from day to day activities of various departments. Let the HODs be made answerable for the smooth running of their departments.
(The author is former HOD, Dept. of Chemistry, GCW Parade.)
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