PANAJI
If execution of plans go right, palliative care could be an integral part of the public healthcare system in the next few years here in Goa.
A senior health official said, plans are taking shape to spread the palliative care programme across the State’s public healthcare system in a bid to fill the void where seniors and people with chronic illnesses and their families are left to fend for themselves with no services available.
Currently, the Directorate of Health services operates a dedicated palliative care unit at the South Goa District Hospital in Margao where patients are assessed in the OPD and if found needing permanent care is enrolled on the registry.
Already more than 18 months in operation, the SGDH palliative care unit team is headed by a ‘project director’ and comprises two counsellors and ‘social workers’ and a palliative care physician. There are also two nurses and a multi-tasking staff.
Patients wanting palliative care and consulting the unit at SGDH are usually senior citizens who suffer from diseases that impede normal daily life.
A source at the SGDH said those who have availed services at the unit which is also supported by Cipla Foundation are terminally ill cancer patients or those suffering from cardiovascular disease.
Some with chronic kidney or lung disease, arthritis, dementia, alzheimer’s a few who are either partially or fully paralysed and bed-ridden after surviving a stroke, have also been given care, he added.
The palliative care provided at the SGDH also includes sharing information with both the family as well as the patients with information and also training to manage the symptoms and physical effects of these illnesses.
Meanwhile, the DHS plans to rope in two sub-district hospitals -- at Chicalim and in Ponda -- besides the Community Health Centres which already have the requisite infra, to expand the footprint of its ‘palliative care’ initiative in the State.
Health Minister Vishwajit Rane said palliative care is “crucial” and it also takes care of the psychological and emotional needs of the patient and their families. The dedicated unit at SGDH provides medical care and even home visits for patients who find it difficult to travel to the hospital every now and then.
The State government, meanwhile, has launched a new programme to provide financial assistance to hospices that care for terminally ill patients. Under it, such hospices and homes for the aged with at least 20 admissions, will be entitled to a monthly cash transfer of Rs 2.5 lakh.
The scheme being implemented through the Social Welfare Department is also open to such hospices and homes which may be set up in the future.
