ADILABAD: The Rajiv Gandhi Institute of Medical Sciences (RIMS) and Government Super Speciality Hospital in Adilabad has been functioning without a duly constituted executive committee for nearly a decade, with the last meeting held on May 14, 2016, according to information obtained under the Right to Information (RTI) Act.
The revelation comes as the hospital faces a surge in patient footfall due to seasonal illnesses, with hundreds of people from the erstwhile Adilabad district and neighbouring villages in Maharashtra relying on the facility for treatment.
RTI activist Lanka Srinu sought details on the hospital’s staffing, safety measures, executive committee meetings and vacancies. The RTI reply reportedly stated that the hospital has no fire safety technicians, CCTV operators, oxygen technicians or sewage treatment plant (STP) technicians.
The response also revealed that records of executive committee meetings were available only up to May 14, 2016, with no details of any subsequent meetings, according to Srinu.
Minutes of the 2016 meeting showed that the hospital required 151 teaching faculty members, including professors, associate professors, assistant professors and tutors. However, only 50 posts were allegedly filled, leaving 101 vacancies. The management did not provide the current vacancy position, though officials said the hospital was facing around 20% staff shortage, he alleged.
Srinu alleged that the RIMS Director is also holding additional charge as Medical Superintendent. He accused the management of withholding information despite directions from the State Information Commission and district authorities to provide the details.
He said he would take up the issue with the State Information Commission.
According to Srinu, the 2016 executive committee meeting, chaired by then health minister Dr C Laxma Reddy, approved infrastructure proposals and decided to take up staff expansion in subsequent meetings, which were never conducted.
He alleged that the absence of regular executive committee meetings has delayed decisions on infrastructure development, and recruitment. Meanwhile, Health Minister C Damodar Rajanarasimha recently held a review meeting with MLAs from the erstwhile Adilabad district to discuss issues related to RIMS and healthcare services in the region.