MARGAO
Amid growing outrage in Salcete and across South Goa over the acute shortage of beds at the South Goa District Hospital, Health Minister Vishwajit Rane on Saturday admitted that the hospital is operating at full capacity.
Rane said he had directed the district hospital administration to explore available space within the facility to accommodate additional patient-care facilities.
When asked why the hospital’s fourth floor could not be opened for patients instead of being kept reserved for a proposed medical college, Rane said he would examine the matter with the hospital administration.
“The Hospicio District Hospital is running to its full capacity,” Rane said, responding to reports that patients were being forced to undergo treatment on chairs, wheelchairs, stretchers and even on the floor.
“I have told the district hospital administration to find space to provide additional facilities for the patients,” he added.
The Health Minister also said the government was committed to strengthening healthcare facilities at the South Goa District Hospital. “Work on the Cathlab is presently underway. We have also set up the MRI facility at the hospital. Patients no longer need to travel to the Goa Medical College and Hospital for MRI scans,” he said.
The Goan had reported on Saturday how patients at the district hospital were being treated on chairs, wheelchairs, stretchers and even on the floor due to an acute shortage of beds.
The premier government-run hospital has been under increasing pressure amid a sudden rise in rain-related ailments and respiratory illnesses, which has further strained the existing bed capacity and other facilities.
Fourth floor may ease bed crunch
Officials of the South Goa District Hospital administration say opening the hospital’s fourth floor for patients could help address the acute shortage of beds.
An official said the hospital has already suggested to the government that the nursing college currently operating on the fourth floor be shifted elsewhere, allowing the space to be converted into additional beds. “There is nothing to examine. If the government takes a decision to shift the nursing college and put additional beds on the fourth floor, the problem can be resolved overnight. Finally, the South Goa District Hospital was never intended to house a nursing college,” a doctor attached to the district hospital said.
AAP questions healthcare facilities at hospital
MARGAO: The Aam Aadmi Party on Saturday slammed the BJP government over the deteriorating condition of South Goa District Hospital, alleging it had failed to provide proper healthcare facilities in Goa.
AAP Goa Vice President Roque Mascarenhas said the government should learn from the AAP government in Punjab and introduce Rs 10 lakh annual health insurance for every Goan family to ensure access to quality healthcare closer to home.
“Goans are being forced to take treatment while sitting on wheelchairs, stretchers and even on the floor. They are not doing this by choice. Many families cannot afford private treatment,” Mascarenhas said.
He said the problem was not limited to the South Goa District Hospital. “The BJP is failing Goans. People across Goa are demanding better healthcare. Just yesterday, AAP highlighted the lack of facilities at the Canacona CHC. In Ponda too, there has been a long-standing demand to upgrade the ID Hospital into a district hospital,” he said.
AAP Goa Youth Wing Vice President Neash Steve Coutinho said the government had focused on creating large infrastructure, but “infrastructure alone is not enough”. He said hospitals also needed adequate beds, doctors, staff, equipment and other essential resources.
AAP State Organisation Secretary Prashant Naik raised the issue of sewage leakage at the South Goa District Hospital, saying it had been brought to the authorities’ attention several times without action. “The sewage leakage is causing a bad smell around the hospital. Patients and visitors are being forced to bear this situation. A hospital should provide a clean and healthy environment, not add to the discomfort of patients,” Naik said.
