The Hindu : Karnataka News : Kolar district hospital in need of major surgery

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Karnataka

Karnataka

Kolar district hospital in need of major surgery

Vishwa Kundapura

Human Rights Commission and Public Accounts Committee express grave concern at the conditions

The hospital was renovated with World Bank aid
SHRC orders Government to provide basic facilities in two months

What ails the hospital? The Sri Narasimharaja district hospital at Kolar.

KOLAR: A recent order from the Karnataka State Human Rights Commission (SHRC), coupled with the pulling up of authorities by Public Accounts Committee (PAC) of the State Legislature, stands testimony to the state of affairs at the Sri Narasimha Raja (SNR) District Hospital in Kolar.

While the SHRC ordered the State Government to provide necessary equipment and infrastructure to the hospital for the serving poor patients better, the PAC has expressed deep anguish about the disorder prevailing at the hospital.

The SNR hospital, which was renovated with the aid from World Bank, has become the red herring in the public eyes for quite sometime owing to lack of facilities and alleged inhuman approach of the doctors and other staff towards the patients. Alleged rampant corruption among the medical and non-medical staff coupled with inefficient administration has aggravated the situation divesting the better health services to the underprivileged masses from the rural areas.

The hospital is running short of major equipment such as oxygen flow metre, glucometer, seotal monitor, suction apparatus etc. Even, the operation theatre lacks proper lighting arrangements owing to absence of generator. Ambulances are also not operational.

On the one hand, though the Hospital’s Users’ Fund was richer by about Rs. 95 lakh, it was not utilised properly to purchase the badly needed equipment. On the other, the hospital was paralysed owing to shortage of staff, including doctors and qualified technicians. Scanner and two of three X-Ray machines were lying idle, forcing poor patients to depend on private hospitals.

The PAC, led by it’s chairman Siddaramaiah and consisting of members MLC V.R. Sudarshan and MLA V. Muniyappa, during its visit a couple of days ago, was taken aback by the condition of the hospital. Irked by the stench at the toilet, Mr. Siddaramaiah took District Surgeon D. Srinivasan to task. “This is enough to infect diseases to those visiting the hospital,” the former Deputy Chief Minister lamented.

The committee visited the hospital to study the implementation of Karnataka Health Services Development Project funded by the World Bank.

Following the media reports and outcry by the public about the breaking down of the service at the district hospital, SHRC chairman S.R. Nayak has ordered the State Government to provide basic facilities within two months.

In its eight-page order, the SHRC has ordered to fill the vacancies in the general surgery, paediatrics and some other departments. It also directed to ensure enough supply of medicines regularly to the hospital. Providing 30 KVA generator and express line for power supply to the hospital are some other aspects mentioned in the order.

Though the then Health Commissioner Madan Gopal transferred the staff en masse following complaints by the public, the existing staff at the hospital apparently did not mend their ways so far. Whether the moves by the Human Rights Commission and the PAC will have the effect and will there be improvement in the situation, is to be seen. The comment by Mr. Siddaramaiah that ”We only can diagnose. But it is the government that has to conduct the surgery” stresses on the need of major surgery to the district hospital.

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