Reiterating the government’s commitment to deliver health services to each and every person, Union Health Minister J. P. Nadda has said the Centre intends to tie up with the private sector for it and a blueprint in this regard will be framed soon.
“The Centre is working on an elaborate plan to roll out a blueprint for health services with the participation of the private sector in next two months and is committed to provide it to the last man of the society,” Mr. Nadda said, delivering a lecture on ‘Universal Healthcare: Forging Partnerships with the Private Sector’ here.
The programme was organised by Y. N. Singh Memorial Foundation as a part of its second edition of the national lecture series on contemporary issues.
Referring to the availability of health infrastructure in the country, the Health and Family Welfare Minister said the major problem is not availability of resources but its poor implementation.
Citing an example, he said Uttar Pradesh was unable to spend Rs. 7,500 crore and Bihar Rs. 3,500 crore allocated to them under different schemes.
“Finance is not a problem, but their rightful implementation is a major issue,” Mr. Nadda said.
He said that in order to bring uniformity in health services across the country, the government has established the prestigious All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in many States including Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Odisha, Assam, West Bengal and Jammu and Kashmir.
Besides, to improve health services, the government has identified 187 districts in the country where extension of existing services and capacity building will be done. Also, 58 districts hospitals were shortlisted for upgrading as medical colleges to deal with the problem of shortage of doctors and paramedical staff.
Referring to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ambitious National Health Protection Scheme and National Dialysis Programme, Mr. Nadda said the government is launching dialysis programme in 400 select districts in the country under PPP model and would offer it free of cost to BPL (below poverty line) families and on a restricted amount to those above poverty line.
He said the introduction of ambulance services across the country was even praised by the Sri Lanka government and it has urged India to implement it in the island nation also.
Responding to a demand of clearing Central Government Health Scheme (CGHS) payments on a fast pace, he said it will be done soon so that hospitals associated with it will not have to wait for long to get their dues. Addressing the programme, noted heart surgeon Naresh Trehan said the management of communicable diseases among others is a major challenge before the nation.
“If serious efforts are being made for eradication of communicable diseases, then number of patients visiting hospitals would automatically come down and we can work in a more focused way in dealing with dreaded problems like heart ailments and cancer and also on research and innovation,” he said.
The Medanta Medicity Chairman and Managing Director also said that his institute is working on the fusion of modern and ayurvedic medicines as both are effective systems, and would publish its research paper on the issue in next 2—4 years.
Madhya Pradesh Health Minister Rustam Singh, his Chhattisgarh counterpart Ajay Chandrakar and Leader of Opposition in Chhattisgarh Assembly T S Singh Deo among others were present on the occasion. - PTI
