The Hindu : Kerala / Thiruvananthapuram News : Lack of modernisation hits GH functioning

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Wednesday, Feb 09, 2005

Kerala

Kerala - Thiruvananthapuram

Lack of modernisation hits GH functioning

By C. Maya

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM, FEB. 8. The lack of timely modernisation and poor infrastructure has left the General Hospital (GH) with vacant beds even as the Medical College Hospital, the main referral centre, is unable to handle the influx of patients to its wards.

Sources say that while some of the facilities in the GH are grossly underutilised, acute shortage of para medical staff and infrastructural deficiencies, are impeding the proper functioning of the hospital.

Adequate space

"We have adequate space and high level of medical expertise. With some investment in infrastructure and staff, we could reduce the patient load at MCH significantly," says Baby Soya, the Superintendent at the GH.

A senior doctor pointed out that modernisation of wards alone would bring in more patients to the GH.

Patients were put off by some of the wards that are housed in buildings that are 100 to 140 years old and which lack proper ventilation. "Almost 20 per cent of the beds in the general wards remain vacant most of the time," he said.

Theatre closed

With the operation theatre here remaining closed for annual maintenance, more beds at the hospital are likely to remain vacant for the next month or two. The 740-bed hospital has 24-hours casualty unit, blood bank, six medical and surgery units each, Paediatrics, Psychiatry, Physical Medicine, preventive clinic, specialities like ENT, Orthopaedics, Cardiology, Ophthalmology and Neurology and a host of weekly clinics -- for diabetes, backache, geriatric problems and paediatric asthma.

Despite having a general surgeon on duty and an anaesthetist on call round-the-clock, no emergency surgeries are performed here.

"We have a full-fledged lab, but there is no staff to run it round-the-clock. The same is the case with the X-ray unit. Without these basic facilities, no surgeries can be performed," a doctor points out.

Proposal pending

A proposal submitted by the GH some two years ago, for constructing a new operation theatre complex, with ICUs and post-operative wards has been pending with the authorities. At present, the operation theatre is a separate block, far away from the post-operative and surgical wards.

A patient who has undergone surgery has to be transported in the open air on a trolley, with all paraphernalia, to the post-operative ward.

When it rains, an umbrella comes in handy, a para medical staff here says. And this, in a hospital which performs over 35 elective surgeries daily!

Cardiology block

The proposed Cardiology block for the GH is also pending. A fully-equipped Physical Medicine department has not been functional for the past six years because of the lack of staff.

The post of Forensic surgeon has been vacant for a long time and as autopsies cannot be done, the mortuary facilities are also largely unused. Because of this, all bodies end up at MCH, where arguments over mortuary space is a daily affair.

No space crunch

Unlike MCH, there is no space crunch here and much of the 50 acres remains unutilised. One of the main problems faced by the hospital is that many of its ancient buildings are scattered around the campus and its construction, unsuitable for a hospital. Funds are scarce and the income generation of Hospital development committee is not substantial enough to take up big projects.

Though the GH authorities had requested that some development projects like ward renovation and a trauma care unit be included in the Modernising Government Programme, there has been no response.

Renovation

However, the GH is proceeding with the renovation of its ward 10 into a Paediatric ICU with a measles isolation ward, out-born nursery and centralised oxygen facility.

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