Initiative to detect active TB cases in UP and Uttarakhand
The initiative is undertaken by the Institute of Heart and Lung Diseases (IHLD) in collaboration with Krafton India.
Uttarakhand is banking on the Indian Army in solving the shortage of doctors in the hill state.
According to a rough estimate, there is a shortage of over 1,300 doctors in government hospitals across the state. Against 2,715 sanctioned posts of medical officers, only 1,342 are serving across Uttarakhand.
Uttarakhand Chief Minister Trivendra Rawat recently met Chief of the Army Staff General Bipin Rawat and discussed with him the idea of inducting ex-army doctors in government hospitals.
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Rawat said, “Army has assured us that after retirement their specialist doctors are willing to provide services in Uttarakhand. We have received 102 applications of senior doctors so far.”
The state has a dozen district hospitals, seven district women hospitals, four base hospitals, 16 combined hospitals, 86 Community Health Centres, 47 Primary Health Centres and 212 Additional PHCs.
But, due to the shortage of doctors, the government has so far failed to provide satisfactory medical facilities in the hill state.
The practice of posting experienced government doctors in big cities like Dehradun, Haridwar and Nainital is prevalent. Not many are willing to serve in the rural areas. This tendency has turned many government-run hospitals into referral centres.
Political activist Samar Bhandari says, “The state government should ensure that the retired army doctors get adequate support staff. Otherwise the experiment will fail.”
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