Nutrition policy by May 31, says Himachal CM Sukhvinder Sukhu

Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu on Tuesday directed the Health Department to formulate a comprehensive nutrition policy by May 31 this year.

Presiding over a meeting of senior officers of the Health Department here, the CM said there was a need to create widespread awareness among people regarding the nutritional value of food to realise the vision of a “Fit Himachal”.

“Himachal is set to become the first state in the country to formulate such a comprehensive policy,” he said. The CM also stressed the importance of digitisation in the Health Department and directed officials to make patients’ records available online to ensure faster and easier healthcare services. “With this system, patients will not need to carry paper registration slips or medical test reports,” he said.

Sukhu asked the department to launch a pilot project at Indira Gandhi Medical College and Hospital for digitisation of patient data in five departments — Pathology, Radiology, Mycology, Biochemistry and Pharmacy.

He assured adequate manpower for implementation of the project and said after successful execution, the initiative would be expanded to all departments of IGMC and other medical colleges in the state.

The CM said the state government was committed to providing world-class healthcare facilities within Himachal and plans were underway to spend Rs 3,000 crore on high-end machines and medical equipment to strengthen the healthcare system.

He said the government had already sanctioned Rs 75 crore for establishing automated laboratories in three medical colleges. Sukhu added that the government was also making efforts to double the seats of senior resident doctors in all medical colleges, considering their crucial role in the effective functioning of healthcare institutions.