3rd major project meeting uncertain fate
Govind Sharma
JAMMU, June 2: Despite High Court directions and lapse of over four years the Kidney Transplant Centre is nowhere in sight at Government Super Speciality Hospital Jammu even though a sum of Rs 15 crore has already been sanctioned and Jammu and Kashmir Organ Transplant (Amendment) Act enacted by the Governor.
According to official sources, every year about 2000 kidney patients are referred from Super Speciality Hospital Jammu to either SKIMS Soura in Srinagar, PGI Chandigarh or AIIMS Delhi for kidney transplant as there is no such facility in Jammu. Only dialysis facility is available in SSH.
Sources said hearing a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) filed by Smile Social Youth Club through its president Matloob Saleem Qureshi raising the issue of organ transplant, the Division Bench of J&K High Court had on May 21, 2014 directed the Government to establish organ transplant centres in two Medical Colleges of the State.
Moreover, the previous Government in 2016 had announced to establish a Kidney Transplant Centre in SSH Jammu so that patients from Jammu and adjoining districts do not have to go outside the State for availing this facility.
“However, even after the lapse of a considerable period of time there is no progress to make this facility a reality in Jammu,” sources said adding in every aspect whether it is staff, infrastructure and procurement of requisite machinery and equipments, there seems to be no development till date.
In December last year, Jammu & Kashmir Transplantation of Human Organ (Amendment) Act was enacted by the Governor on the lines of the Central Act so as to pave the way for start of organ transplant facility in the State. However, vital provisions of the legislation have not received the due attention of the Health and Medical Education Department till date.
Talking about requisite infrastructure and procurement of equipments, sources said though Government has sanctioned Rs 50 crore for the project but only an amount of Rs 15 crore has been released for the purchase of equipments and raising infrastructure. “While the procurement of equipment is in pre-bidding stage, only an ICU has been established in the name of infrastructure”, sources informed.
About staff, sources said, “It is going to be a major road block in making the facility functional as the both the departments which deal with the kidney disease patients i.e. Urology and Nephrology lack doctors and other paramedical staff”, adding “while there are only 2 consultants in Nephrology Department, Urology Department has three consultants and two of them are on deputation from GMC Jammu and their fate is also uncertain”.
Giving more details on shortage of staff, sources said that the hospital was made functional in 2013 with about 80% staff including doctors appointed on contractual basis under SRO 384 for a period of 6 years. Now when most of the staff has completed term of 6 years, they have been relieved while some others are going to be relieved in the next few months.
Sources said, “It means in coming months, the hospital will lose about 80% staff which is trained in various disciplines as Government has yet not taken any decision vis-à-vis extending their term or regularizing their services while most of the terminated employees have already knocked the doors of the court, seeking extension of their term and regularization of their services”.
“In such circumstances when the hospital is already facing acute shortage of staff, making the Kidney Transplant Centre functional will be an uphill task as the new facility requires highly trained additional staff,” sources rued, adding the absence of blood bank and shortage of anesthetists is another obstacle in the way of making Kidney Transplant Centre functional.
Sources said if these shortcomings are not removed and the process of procurement of equipments is not accelerated, this project will also meet the fate of Eye Bank and Swine Lab of GMC Jammu, which could not be made functional even after five years of their announcement.
When contacted, Principal GMC Jammu Dr Sunanda Raina said that the facility will be made functional as soon as they get requisite equipment from the J&K Medical Supplies Corporation. “The requirement of the equipment has been submitted to the Corporation along with funds. Whenever, we get equipment, the facility will be started,” she added.
However, she didn’t give specific time-frame for the completion of this exercise.
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