Acute staff shortage ails M’kotla Civil Hospital

Seven weeks after social activist Bhisham Kinger filed a public interest litigation (PIL) in the Punjab and Haryana High Court, the residents visiting the Malerkotla Civil Hospital for seeking medical assistance are a disappointed lot.

Acute staff shortage is the major factor behind the poor state of affairs at the

Civil Hospital.

Civil Surgeon Dr Sanjay Goyal said efforts were being made to make maximum use of human resources and the equipment to provide healthcare services to the residents.

“Emergency medical officers deployed at almost all healthcare centres are well trained in providing first aid to even serious patients, including cardiac arrest,” said Goyal, adding that patients requiring further assistance were being referred to tertiary healthcare centres.

Kinger alleged that the Civil Hospital had failed to meet growing demand of healthcare services and had been unable to provide timely treatment due to lack of doctors and inadequate infrastructure.

The situation had led to frequent referrals of patients to distant hospitals, causing delays in treatment, added Kinger.

The Tribune, too, has been highlighting issues related to failure of successive governments to provide adequate healthcare facilities at the Civil Hospital.

The PIL had come up for hearing on December 12, 2024, and is now listed for January 27. Counsel for the State had sought further time for filing an affidavit on the subject.

“Learned counsel for the State of Punjab seeks and is granted further time, as a matter of last indulgence, to file an affidavit in response to the averments made in the present petition,” read the orders passed by the high court on December 12.