The Punjab Government is all set to provide video conferencing facility in 100 health institutions of the Health and Family Welfare Department to facilitate deposition and recording of the evidences of doctors, medical officers and experts in various court cases.Approving the project, Surjit Kumar Jayani, Health and Family Welfare Minister, Punjab said that video conferencing facility would help doctors in recording their evidences without appearing in the court that would enable them to devote more time in providing health care to the patients in the hospitals.Jayani said that Video Conferencing facility in 100 health institutions of the state which includes District Hospitals, all Sub-pisional Hospitals and selected strategically located CHCs is likely to be set up by the end of this year. As a time gap arrangements, it has been decided that Video Conference facility available through NICNET at district headquarters would be availed for this purpose.
The Health Minister said that the Civil Surgeon concerned and the Principals of the Government Medical College, Amritsar and Patiala shall be the Nodal officers for coordinating the recording of the evidence of Medical Officers/Experts in each district through this system.
As the Video Conferencing facilities are not available in the newly carved districts i.e. Pathankot and Fazilka, the concerned Medical Experts officers may utilize the services of the Video Conferencing facilities available at District Gurdaspur, and, Ferozpur.He said that whenever the doctor receives a summon for recording his/her evidence in any case, he/she shall immediately inform the civil surgeon/Principal, Government Medical college who shall then get in touch with the Systems Officer of the respective district court and request for scheduling of the evidence through video Conferencing. The Civil Surgeon/Principal, GMC shall also inmate to the respective DIO about this request having been forwarded to the Systems officer.‘The Systems Officer of the respective court shall schedule all such requests and after seeking instructions from the respective Courts, shall schedule the recording of the evidence through Video Conferencing and shall communicate the schedule to the concerned Civil Surgeon/Principal, GMC’, added Jayani.
Health Minister said that the Civil Surgeon/Principal, GMC shall, on receiving the intimation from the Systems Officer, communicate the same to the concerned Medical Officer/Expert accordingly. The Civil surgeon/Principal, GMC shall also remain in touch with the DIO of the concerned district in order to make sure that the Video conferencing premises in the NIC Centre, DC Office, is open on the scheduled date and time and a technical person s available to facilitate the Video Conferencing session.Director Health Dr. Karanjit Singh further said that the Civil Surgeon and the Principals, GMC, Patiala and Amritsar will intimate the Director Health & Family Welfare and the Director Medical education & research about the number of evidences of the Medical officers/Experts recorded through the VC every month.