The Vice President of India, M. Venkaiah Naidu advised the doctors to Treat Patients with Patience, Empathy and Compassion. He was addressing the 8th Convocation of Postgraduate Institute of Medical Education and Research, Dr. Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital, here today. The Union Minister for Health & Family Welfare, Shri J.P. Nadda, the Ministers of State for Health & Family Welfare, Shri Ashwini Kumar Choubey, Smt. Anupriya Patel and other dignitaries were present on the occasion.The Vice President said that education and healthcare are the two pillars of nation building. He further said that India has made rapid strides in various sectors, including the medical field. However, even after 70 years, we are facing many challenges including poverty, illiteracy, atrocities on women and girls, problem of drinking water in many rural and urban areas, lack of hygiene and sanitation, casteism, corruption and urban-rural divide, he added.
The Vice President said that while the Government is committed to providing universal health coverage to all, the urban-rural divide is more glaring in the healthcare sector. To overcome the problem of manpower shortage in rural areas, he advised to make it mandatory for MBBS graduates to work in the rural areas before getting their first promotion. This would enable the rural population to get better medical care and at the same time sensitize the medical fraternity to the healthcare concerns of rural population, he added.The Vice President said that several State Governments have designed their own health insurance schemes. He further said that the aim is to ensure that no person is denied the right to affordable medical care. The private sector must join hands with the government to ensure that healthcare is accessible and affordable, he added.The Vice President said that the graduating doctors have chosen this profession casts an onerous responsibility in building not only a ‘Swasth Bharat but also a Shresth Bharat’. He further said that they have been trained under a very proficient faculty and a world-class postgraduate teaching program and research facility. In this temple of learning, they have been exposed to frontline medical technology, witnessed state of the art operations like organ transplant, limb re-implantation, neonatal operations, brain and cardiac surgery, participated in investigation and treatment of challenging ailments, he added.