SAMBALPUR: The General Medicine ward of Veer Surendra Sai Institute of Medical Sciences and Research (VIMSAR) is faced with an acute shortage of beds. More than 140 patients were admitted to the ward on Tuesday and several of them had to accommodate themselves on the floor. Even as there was no space to even walk through the corridor, 62 more patients were admitted to the ward on Wednesday.
The patients admitted in the last two days include a few suffering from liver and kidney disorders making them vulnerable to infection. However, they had no option but to find space on the floor. What’s worse is that the corridor is not cleaned regularly. Similar is the plight of washrooms in the ward which emanate foul smell due to lack of sanitation. Evidently, the existing General Medicine department was supposed to be shifted to a new multi-storey building which was completed in 2016 and has been lying idle for years.
Eventually, due to the efforts of some doctors of the department, some patients were shifted to one of the floors of the new building.
The move was aimed at pressurising the authorities to shift the entire department at the earliest. However, as the authorities took no steps to shift the department, the Health and Family Welfare Minister was apprised of the matter during his last visit to VIMSAR. The Minister had directed the authorities to make the new building operational by August 15.
The hospital authorities woke up from their slumber on the day and the HOD, Superintendent and Director visited the new building to chalk out a plan for shifting the department. Sources said, the new building is faced with issues relating to fire safety norms due to which the authorities were not willing to shift the department there.
However, a senior doctor of the department said, if fire safety is a concern, then why are the patients, admitted to one of the floors of the new building, have not been shifted. “Why did they promise the Health Minister to shift it by August 15 under such circumstances”, he questioned.