Manage patient load at RIO, says rights panel

: J.B. Koshy, chairperson of the State Human Rights Commission (SHRC), has asked the Health Secretary to find a solution to the crowding of patients in the OP clinics at the Regional Institute of Ophthalmology (RIO).

At present, over 2,000 persons visit the OP clinics, making it extremely difficult for doctors to patiently examine or diagnose patients, one of the doctors had said in her petition submitted to the SHRC.

New block

The Director of the RIO, in the explanation given to SHRC, said the patient load would be more manageable within a year, after the new multi-storeyed block l is completed and the OP clinics are shifted there.

The Director said there had been complaints regarding crowding earlier too, and some temporary measures had been adopted in an attempt to manage the crowd. He said referral OP and non-referral OP had been separated, while patients could also seek emergency care at the 24-hours casualty. — Special Correspondent