HEALTH: Badal for more vigorous improvement in state health services

Chandigarh, January 11, 2013: In a bid to further improve the Health care delivery system in the state, Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal today gave a green signal to the Health Department for the recruitment of specialist Doctors and other Para Medical Staff for the Community Health Centres (CHCs) on priority.

 A decision to this effect was taken by the Chief Minister during a high level meeting of the Health Department here at Punjab Bhawan today in which a ‘Task Group’ on Health and Medical Education of Punjab Governance Reforms Commission under the leadership ofChairman, Medical Council of India Prof. K. K. Talwar, had submitted three reports with their recommendations to Improve the standards of Public Health Facilities in the state.

The first report submitted by the task group was for improving the Standards of Public Health Facilities in the State of Punjab, the second for Improving the Standards of Medical Education in the State of Punjab and third report was on the Skill Development Training and employment generation in healthcare (Para-Medical Courses).

Badal asked Principal Secretary Health to study all the recommendations of the task group thoroughly and implement these in a time bound manner to improve health care facilities in terms of adequate availability of best specialised services of the expert doctors, besides all types of clinical testing facilities at the Community Health Centres (CHCs) level. He also asked the Medical Education and Research Department to depute more senior Residents in all the Government Medical Colleges as per the assigned posts.

Commending the efforts to initiate walk in interview by the department for the recruitment of specialist doctors, Badal asked the department to work out a strategy to attract more and more professionals besides conducting regular campus interviews. He also approved the proposal of the health department to introduce two-year Special PG Diploma for MBBS (PCMS) Doctors by Baba Farid University of Health Sciences to improve their skills and a special Child Health care programme to redress the nutritional deficiency amongst children.

Badal also approved the recommendations of the task group to commence 37 new courses to be run by Baba Farid University of Health Sciences for the skill development of our youth in health sector. These courses included 3-Certificate courses in Medical Transcription, Plaster Techniques, Dental Chair Technician; 6-Diploma courses in Physiotherapy and Occupational Therapy,  Ophthalmic Technology, OT Technician, Dental Mechanics, Radio-imaging and Medical Lab Technology; 9-Bachelor level (B. Sc.) courses in Ophthalmic Technician, Medical Lab Technology, Radio-diagnosis, Radiotherapy, B. Pharmacy, Physiotherapy and Occupational Therapy, Audiology & Speech Therapy, Operation Theatre Technician and Hospital Documentation & Record Keeping; 12-Master level (M. Sc.) courses of M. Pharmacy, Audiology & Speech Therapy, Physiotherapy, Anatomy & Physiology, Biochemistry, Pharmacology,  adio-therapy, Radio-diagnosis, Histopathology, Nuclear Medicine, Hospital Management/Administration &  Nutrition & Dietetics ; and 7-PG certificate/Diploma courses in Perfusionist, Dialysis, Cath Lab, Respiratory Therapy, Neurophysiology, Medical Transcription & Health Promotion/Education.