ADILABAD: Sanitation workers have stepped up cleaning and garbage collection at RIMS Government Hospital in Adilabad following the fire incident at the Special Newborn Care Unit (SNCU), with municipal officials also monitoring sanitation arrangements.
Over the last two days, workers have been cleaning hospital wards, collecting garbage from wards and balconies and shifting it to municipal dump yards through tractors. The municipal sanitation department has provided additional garbage collection vehicles for the hospital.
However, a visit to the hospital showed several sanitation and maintenance issues. Gutkha stains were visible in corners of several rooms, while a glass panel on a door in the general ward was damaged and had not been replaced.
Garbage collection and cleaning were reportedly poor even before the fire incident. Medical waste was also being collected irregularly and dumped in the garbage room and along passages near the mortuary, sources said.
BRS Boath MLA Anil Jadhav and former minister Jogu Ramanna inspected the hospital and questioned the sanitation arrangements.
Several bathrooms and toilets lacked proper taps and were poorly maintained, making some of them difficult to use. Sanitation work has intensified since the fire incident, particularly ahead of Health Minister Damodar Rajanarasimha’s visit. Workers were seen cleaning wards and other areas more frequently over the last two days, while some areas remained neglected on ordinary days.
Municipal Commissioner and sanitation officials have been monitoring the arrangements and deployed additional tractors for garbage collection at RIMS. Municipal sanitation officials found that only around 20% of the sanctioned sanitation staff were working regularly at the hospital, sources said.
Garbage was found in several wards, including the critical-care hospital on the first floor.