Citizens pitch for 24X7 PHCs across Telangana

Hyderabad: Citizens of Telangana demanding the government to operate Primary Health Centres (PHCs), Urban Primary Health Centre (UPHCs) and Basti Dawakhana round the clock, or at least to extend the timing up to 10 pm for few days as the seasonal ailments are at their peak in the State. PHCs are UPHCs in rural areas and Basti Dawakhana in Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) are being operated from 9 am to 4 pm.

Population in rural areas are dependent on PHCs or district hospitals patients visit PHCs for mild ailments and those who are suffering from severe ailments will reach district hospitals. Most of the PHCs, UPHCs and Basti Dawakhana have no adequate doctors, staff to manage the health centres if the timings are extended.

The government had decided to fill vacancies in all the PHCs the then Health Minister Eatala Rajender in 2020 had a detailed review meeting with higher officials about fresh recruitment in PHCs to strengthen the Health Department but the process has thrown in cold storage after his resignation. There is also demanded to increase the PHCs and UPHCs in rural Telangana according to population.

Telangana has only 885 government health centres 636 among them are Primary while 249 are Urban Primary Health Centres according to Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.

The state government statistics show that Hyderabad City has about 85 UPHCs for its population while Medchal Malkajgiri district has only 12 Primary Health Centres for 3,81,744 rural and 5,21,080 slum population the Urban population of the district is 28,03,084 as per the record. People in different areas are alleging that the doctors in PHCs will leave the centre post-lunch. G Pavan a resident of Balajinagar, Kukatpally was forced to turn back without consulting the doctor at UPHC in Kukatpally speaking to The Hans India he said, "I visited the health centre today when I came at 2:45 pm there was no doctors in the centre the staff said that doctors are having lunch, when I visited again after an hour, I was informed that doctors and the staff just left the hospital."

According to health authorities, there are requests to operate PHCs at night. The department is working on it post Covid and had several discussions. Operating health centres round the clock will be possible after new recruitments soon the plan may execute and health centres round the clock will available for citizens across the State.