There is only one rehabilitation doctor for every 1 lakh surgeons, and only 1,000 to 1,500 beds at rehabilitation facilities, for a population of 1.3 billion in the country, said doctors.
On Tuesday, at the launch of HAMSA, a 20-bed rehabilitation centre for patients who have suffered spinal cord injury, brain injury, stroke, back and neck pain, cerebral palsy and severe neurological disorders, doctors stressed the need for more rehabilitation services in the country.
Road accidents
G. Balamurali, spine and neurosurgeon, and managing director, HAMSA, said 300 to 400 persons died every day in road accidents in the country. The accidents have left over 50,000 persons disabled with spinal cord injury and brain injury. Road traffic accidents are the biggest causes for spinal cord and brain injuries, he added.
“In this, 75% victims are young — aged 20 to 40 years. We must educate people on the importance of wearing helmets and using seatbelts,” he said. He stressed the importance of rehabilitation for patients with brain and spinal cord injuries.
‘Established concept’
Aravindan Selvaraj, executive director, Kauvery Hospital, said a rehabilitation centre was a well-established concept in the western world.
G. Arjun Das, senior consultant neurologist, Mercury Hospital, said a few more rehabilitation centres would make life easy for patients.
Services such as speech and swallowing therapy, vocational therapy, cognitive therapy and psychiatry would also be offered at the centre. HAMSA Trust was set up to provide free treatment to the underprivileged, a release said.
