NEW STATUS: A view of the K.R. Hospital in Mysore. — PHOTO: M.A. SRIRAM

MYSORE: The process of granting autonomous status to the Krishna Rajendra Hospital here has begun, according to Medical Education Minister V.S. Acharya.

Letter

In a letter to M. Lakshmana, convener of the Association of Concerned and Informed Citizens of Mysore (ACICM), the Minister has stated that he has issued directions to the officials concerned with regard to the granting of autonomy to the hospital.

Response

The response from the Minister follows a memorandum submitted to him by the association during his visit to the hospital recently. The memorandum was submitted to the Minister after eliciting the views of individuals and organisations on granting autonomy to the hospital.

Meeting

During a meeting that discussed the pros and cons of granting autonomy, a majority of the participants had favoured the status to the hospital, while a few cautioned against the problems likely to be faced later.

A majority of the participants had favoured autonomous status as the Medical Council of India had threatened to derecognise the undergraduate courses offered by the Mysore Medical College, which is attached to the hospital.

Promises

Despite many promises, the State Government has not taken steps to revive the hospital. However, the opponents of granting autonomous status to the hospital had argued that it was not a panacea to the ills plaguing the hospital. The Government would provide financial assistance to the hospital for the next five to 10 years only if autonomy was granted.

User charges

User charges for medical services would have to be increased to mobilise funds. This would be a burden on the users.

Meanwhile, Secretary-General of the Karnataka State Federation of Consumers' Organisations S.P. Thirumala Rao has welcomed the steps initiated by the Government to grant autonomy to the hospital. After securing autonomy, the hospital should emerge as a teaching and research-oriented institution and increase the standard of advanced medical services offered to patients.

Research

He told The Hindu that the students of the hospital should present more scientific papers and undertake research, besides treating patients.

At present, there were units that had infrastructure but did not have adequate staff, and certain units had staff with no infrastructure. Efforts should be made to upgrade the renal unit and management of head injuries, he added.

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