ROURKELA: At a time when cases in Sundargarh district are rising at an exponential rate, hospitals here are struggling to provide quality Covid healthcare due to an acute shortage of doctors.
While the 13 post-graduate (PG) doctors of different government Medical College and Hospitals (MCHs) deployed to Sundargarh have not joined yet, the response of doctors from the private sector to help the administration in its battle against the virus has been lukewarm.
The Health & Family Welfare (H&FW) department in its orders on April 5, 16 and 19 had deployed 27 PG doctors in medicines, pharmacology, paediatric, surgery, radiology, psychiatry, microbiology and anaesthesia to Sundargarh. But, only 14 of them have joined so far.
On April 29, Sundargarh Collector Nikhil Pawan Kalyan had issued an order asking private doctors to join but only five private doctors have joined at Rourkela so far against the need of at least 20.
All four major dedicated Covid-19 hospitals housed at the JP Hospital, Shanti Memorial Hospital, Hi-Tech MCH and Super Speciality Hospital of Ispat General Hospital, are located at Rourkela.
The NTPC COVID-19 Health Centre, which added 20 ventilator equipped ICU beds two days back, is in Sundargarh town. Rourkela ADM and Incident Commander for Covid-19 Aboli Sunil Naravane said given the increased demand for doctors, the administration is persuading private doctors to come forward in providing Covid treatment.
She said the administration is hopeful of getting services of more private doctors soon. Incidentally, 40 House Surgeons (interns) of VIMSAR, Sambalpur, on Friday joined Sundargarh to help the administration in Covid-19 management.
Sundargarh CDM PHO Dr SK Mishra said 25 of the internee doctors have been sent to Rourkela, while remaining 15 would be deployed to other parts of the district.
With the total active cases mounting to a whopping 8,674 and Covid treatment facilities witnessing full occupancy, more experienced doctors are needed at these facilities to save lives. Also, shortage of doctors is a major impediment to increase ICU and ventilator facilities.
DOCTOR CRISIS
Of 27 PG docs deployed to Sundargarh, only 14 have joined
Against the need of 20 private doctors, only 5 are helping the admin in virus management
Shortage of doctors is a major impediment to increase ICU and ventilator facilities