MARGAO
As the façade of the building housing the Margao Urban Health Centre collapsed early Saturday, the Health Services may have to grapple with a simple question “ why was the health centre run in a congested and old premises when the Hospicio building, located just a stone’s throw away right across the road, was lying vacant after its shifting to the South Goa district hospital?
Was the health centre not shifted to the vacant old Hospicio building because the government plans to start nursing school with a hostel facility and utilise the top two floors of the district hospital building to set up a private medical college?
Take note, even senior Health officials, including Health Director, Dr Geeta Kakodkar praised Margao Health Centre Dr Succorro Quadros for giving the ageing building a new lease of life and getting the building decked up with a coat of paint through CSR, but the moot question remains unanswered “ why was the health centre not shifted to the vacant Hospicio building since the last one year and half.
Consider this. Leave alone the building that has come crashing down, the adjoining structure housing the health centre has been functioning from a congested premises over the years. The Margao Urban Health Centre was earlier located in a private building near Cine Lata, behind the Margao Municipal building.
That’s not all. Visitors to the Margao Urban Health Centre have shown a significant rise after Dr Succorro initiated the Out Patient Department (OPD) services last year. Besides, the complex is bustling with activity on Monday’s and Thursday’s when women with their children line up at the centre for immunisation.
Take note, the immunisation centre is housed in a makeshift structure, which resembles a parking lot for vehicles. Moreover, visitors to the Margao Urban Health Centre have been complaining of lack of parking space at the centre, leaving them with no option than to fend for themselves.
The conference hall located on the first floor of the building which has collapsed, sources say, is also not adequate enough to house participants attending programmes on vector borne diseases and other health programmes.
Officials in the know informed that the old Hospicio building (not the heritage structure), which once housed the Blood Bank, canteen, besides the OPD and the Administrative section would have been suffice to cater to the requirements of the urban health centre.
Given that the late Padre Miranda had started the medical facilities way back in the year 1867 in the old Hospicio building, sources pointed out that the government should have continued to dispense the medical facilities from the old Hospicio building by either handing over the premises to Caritas as per the request made by the Church or by shifting the Margao Urban Health Centre to the old building.
“The proposal to start nursing school or college at the old Hospicio building has come only recently after the government decided to set up a private medical college at the South Goa district hospital. The nursing school was initially planned at the district hospital as evident by the fact that the top two floors were designed and furnished to host a nursing college. Just because the government now wants to set up the private medical college at the district hospital, the nursing college is pushed to the old Hospicio building,” sources informed.
Demand grows for handing over part of Hospicio to Caritas
MARGAO: The Shadow Council for Margao has once again reiterated the demand for handing over part of the old Hospicio Hospital to Caritas, to set up a care centre, and preserve the legacy of Late Fr Miranda, who founded the Hospicio.
SCM convenor Savio Coutinho stated that the Archdiocese had submitted a proposal to the Department of Health Services way back on 26th of March 2023, requesting the government to hand over part of the old Hospicio Hospital to the Caritas, so as to set up a care centre for the benefit of all the people, irrespective of religion, caste or creed.
