MARGAO
In a major announcement on Dusshera day, Health Minister Vishwajit Rane on Friday announced full-fledged functioning of the South Goa district hospital from next week, as he along with Health Director Dr Ira Almeida reviewed shifting of the Hospicio services to the new building.
The Health Minister said district hospital will no longer be used for Covid operations, adding the government will take a call on the issue if the situation warrants. He said the ESI hospital Margao can be notified as a Covid hospital in case of spurt in cases, even adding the Goa Medical College Super specialty block will cater to Covid patients.
The Health Minister asserted the South Goa district hospital will be called the “Hospicio South Goa district hospital”, saying the hospital will not be named after any individual given its glorious history.
Rane along with the Health Director and Hospicio Medical Superintendent Dr Deepa Correia reviewed the shifting of Hospicio operations to the South Goa district hospital.
He visited the room housing the CT-scan equipment and also reviewed the functioning of the labs, especially the latest Covid testing machine at the district hospital.
“Hospicio has already shifted the male and female medicine wards to the district hospital. The maternity and pediatric wards have been shifted too. The OPDs will start operating in the new district hospital from Saturday,” he said.
He said the remaining services, including the casualty and surgery departments of Hospicio, will be shifted to the district hospital by next week. “After my review, I can say with confidence that entire hospital operations will be shifted to the district hospital within a week. The hospital will be formally commissioned at a later date after consultation with Chief Minister Pramod Sawant, who will take a call whether the hospital should be inaugurated by him or at the hands of Prime Minister Narendra Modi,” he added.
Given that the South Goa district hospital will not be utilised for Covid operations, the Health Minister gave his nod to the Hospicio management to utilise the district hospital’s third floor, which had played host to Covid patients, for the medicine ward.
The move will help resolve the issues of the medicine department, which had requested the authorities to make available the third floor for its operation.
