Mahatma Gandhi Memorial Hospital gets a new block

The super speciality block will have 440 beds, making it a 1,000-bed hospital

The newly constructed superspeciality blocks atK.A.P. Viswanatham Medical College and MahatmaGandhi Memorial Government Hospital in Tiruchi.Photo: M. Moorthy

The bed strength of the Mahatma Gandhi Memorial Government Hospital, attached to the K.A.P. Viswanatham Government Medical College in the city, will cross the 1,000-mark once the new super speciality block is commissioned.

The super speciality block, which is set to be opened soon, will add 440 beds to the hospital which has 660 beds. Recently, a maternity block with 180 beds was opened at the hospital.

Twelve super speciality departments will be housed at the new block being established at a cost of Rs.100 crore, including Rs. 55 crore for the construction of the ground plus six-floor building and Rs. 45 crore for equipment.

The new block will house the departments of orthopaedics and radio diagnosis, cardiology, and cardiothoracic surgery, neurology and neurosurgery, nephrology and urology, paediatric and plastic surgery, medical and surgical gastroenterology, medical and surgical oncology. Each of these departments will have bout 30 beds each. The new block will have eight major operation theatres and two smaller ones.

“The civil works on the new building was nearing completion. The Public Works Department which has constructed the building is likely to hand over the building to us by the end of this month. Necessary medical equipment are to be installed soon, paving the way for the inauguration of the block,” said P. Karkuzhali, Dean, K.A.P. Viswanatham Government Medical College. Additional doctors and staff would be posted depending on the requirement, she added.

Dr. Karkuzhali, who took charge recently, said the establishment of super specialty departments would help the college to start more postgraduate courses. The college has applied for permission to the Medical Council of India for starting MD in pathology with two seats from the next academic year.

She indicated that a proposal for construction of a medicine and surgery block would be drawn up. With the strengthening of the departments and infrastructure, the hospital would be able to serve more number of patients. A waiting shed for visitors would be built near the new maternity block soon, she added.