Minister for Health & Medical Education, Bali Bhagat today paid an extensive visit to SMGS Hospital and took stock of the facilities available for the patients.Principal GMC, Dr. Sunanda Raina, senior faculty Members, Dr. Sunil Kotwal, Dr. Shashi Gupta and Dr. Rakha Harish, Medical Superintendent, Dr. Raj Kumar Sangra, Deputy Medical Superintendent, Dr. Minakshi Kotwal and engineers of GMC accompanied the minister.The Minister took round of various units, Labor room, Recovery wards and children’s wards and interacted with the patients, attendants, doctors and para-medics and inquired about the facilities available there.He directed for improving the sanitation facilities in the wards and premises besides initiating effective measures to regulate the rush of patients in a systematic way, especially in the Labor room.While reviewing the functioning of the hospital vis-à-vis availability of doctors, para-medical staff, medicines, diagnostic equipment and flow of rush, especially in the Gynae Department, the Minister called for making optimum use of available space to facilitate the rush of Gynae patients.
“Being premier and oldest institution in Jammu division, it caters the huge rush of patients from various parts of the State, including Kashmir Valley during the winter months, thus special strategy needs to be devised to tackle the situation,” he said. He appreciated the dedicated efforts of the doctors to handle the abnormal crowd of patients and urged for maintaining the same spirit in future as well.In view of the huge rush of patient, the Minister directed the engineers to prepare a DPR for further expansion of accommodation to add at least 250 more beds for Gynae patients by making optimum use of available space in the hospital premises. He directed for consulting the JKPCC authorities with original drawing of new block to ascertain the possibility for raising the requisite structure. He said expansion of the hospital is the dire need and every possibility will be explored to add more accommodation on the available space/land. He said the 200-bedded Gynae hospital at Gandhi Nagar which is at the final stage and after its commissioning, the rush at SMGS will reduce upto some extent.
The Minister was informed that presently there is a capacity of 224 beds for the Gynae patients, but as many as 284 beds have been installed by utilizing the optimum adjoining space in view of the constant rush of patients. Similarly, in Labor Room there is a capacity of only 48 beds, but patient rush is always beyond capacity, and the authorities have to face lot of difficulties in managing the Gynae patients. At an average, as many as 100 admissions of Gynae patients are being done daily and they prolong their stay according to the treatment.Minister was informed that similarly, there is a provision of 415 beds in the children wards, including four ICU/NIKU wards, but in summer months there is huge rush of patients and become difficult to manage the affairs and need more accommodation for this department as well.It was further brought into the notice of the minister that the ENT Department is also faced with the same difficulty of space which handles great rush of patients. Dr. Sunil Kotwal projected the demand for separate ward for the Cancer patients, who prolong months together in connection with their lengthy treatment.