The government hospital at Parassala will be upgraded as a taluk headquarters hospital and will have more resources and staff to provide better patient care services, Health Minister V. S. Sivakumar has said.
Mr. Sivakumar said that projects totalling Rs.5 crore would be implemented at the hospital, with contributions from the government and the local area development funds of MLA A.T. George.
The Minister, who was at the hospital to lay the foundation stone of a new patients’ waiting area, held detailed discussions with the hospital administrators, Mr. George, and other representatives of the local bodies regarding the hospital’s requirements.
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The projects for the hospital include construction of a surgical block and an OP block.
It has also been decided to appoint two more doctors at the hospital so that the casualty wing can be run efficiently round the clock. At present, there are only two doctors in the casualty wing. Mr. Sivakumar said that two more gynaecologists would be appointed in the hospital.
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2,000 patients a day
Over 2,000 patients visit the hospital daily in the OP and casualty wing.
At present, the hospital has specialty OPs in general medicine, surgery, gynaecology, paediatrics, dentistry, orthopaedics, and ophthalmology. There is a demand to add two more specialty clinics in dermatology and psychiatry.
The hospital has a sanctioned bed strength of 119, while it actually provides 219 beds in in-patient wards.
More nurses
However, as in the case of most government hospitals, the Parassala hospital too does not have proportionate nursing staff strength to provide better patient care.
The Minister said he would look into the shortage of nursing staff and would provide additional hands through the National Rural Health Mission (NRHM).
District Medical Officer T. Peethambaran and NRHM District Programme Manager B. Unnikrishnan were present at the meeting.