Mahabubnagar: Shortage of medical staff plagues Palamuru

Mahabubnagar : The Palamuru region has been facing severe health crises for the past few months, as majority of hospitals including district, Area, Community and Primary healthcare Centres across the district are suffering due to severe shortage of medical staff.

Take for instance, the 100 bed Area Hospital in Jadcherla, which is served by only one duty doctor assisted by two or three physicians. The hospital’s emergency ward is served by just two nurses with no doctor present on a regular basis. Moreover, it seems that the emergency cases are taken care of only by the duty doctor who is already busy with other hectic medical issues attending in the Operation Theatre.

This kind of pathetic situation clearly indicates that the government is unmindful of the health issues of the poor people. Notably, Jadcherla MLA Janampally Anirudh Reddy, himself admitted in the Assembly that the Area hospital, even though boasts of 100 bed hospital, is not even equipped properly to serve as a 30-bed hospital.

Speaking in the Assembly, he had said that except for a few new staff nurses appointed there, the hospital is severely facing manpower crunch as there are no adequate doctors, nurses, and technicians.

“We are sorry to say that our Area Hospital in Jadcherla is suffering with lack of adequate manpower. Former BRS MLA Laxma Reddy had built the hospital in the low-lying areas which are vulnerable to regular flooding. They built the hospital near Laxma Reddy’s house only to benefit themselves in real estate to escalate the land prices for their ventures established in the vicinity of the hospital. Without any facilities, proper allocation of doctors, and appointment of nurses the former MLA hastily inaugurated the hospital and now the people are facing problems,” observed the MLA, urging the Congress government to immediately allocate adequate number of doctors, nurses and technicians in the diagnostic laboratories of the hospital.

Even in the Mahabubnagar district General Hospital, the situation is no different. The General Hospital which is attached to the Government Medical College, is facing a tough situation due to inadequate medical staff. Every day, the hospital receives more than 1,000 outpatients and of them 20-50 get admitted for treatment. Because of the lack of specialist doctors, surgeons and general physicians and staff nurses, the inpatients are asked to wait for more than 15-20 days for their turn to get surgeries and other medical procedures.

Across the district there are 31 PHCs and UPHCs and other health centres; in all of them there is no adequate medical staff. The poor patients who come for free diagnostic tests are also sent back, citing no technician on site.

When contacted Dr Krishna, District Medical Health Officer, Mahabubnagar, said that except one PHC, all the PHCs have at least one doctor. However, he said void is created sometimes when the doctors go for higher studies like in service Medical PG. “In such instances, we are adjusting with project officers,” he said.

“At present, I have no proper details of vacancies particularly with regard to staff nurses. Recently, we have sent around 360 nurses to Hyderabad for receiving appointment letters. But again, we do not know where these medical staff are allocated,” said Dr Krishna.