NEW DELHI: A concern about the treatment of patients and difficulties faced by their attendants at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) was raised in the Rajya Sabha on Tuesday.
Rajya Sabha legislator Dr V Sivadasan sought details from the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare on the measures being taken to address the problem.
The situation of patients and their attendants had become acute during the peak winter days, when they were forced to wait sit or lie inside and outside the hospital for days, waiting for their turn. Even the Delhi High Court took note of the matter.
Sivadasan, a CPI(M) MP, demanded to know if the government was aware of patients being left without proper shelter and what measures it was taking to provide heating, shelter, and basic facilities to them. He also wanted to know if any winter preparedness protocols existed for Central government hospitals. He also sought information on the sanctioned bed strength at AIIMS and the reasons behind the shortage of beds and waiting space.
Union Minister of State for Health and Family Welfare Prataprao Jadhav said that AIIMS handled high patient load, including referrals from hospitals across the country, due to which the hospital often faced pressure on beds and waiting areas.
While sharing data on in-patient and outpatient visits, Jadhav said that the government was mindful of the needs of the patients and their attendants and aimed to ensure their basic comfort and safety while making efforts to continuously manage the heavy patient load at the hospital.
He said that five shelter homes, also known as Vishram Sadans, were already operational near AIIMS, providing over 1,500 beds, along with basic facilities, such as clean drinking water, toilets, and e-vehicle services. Additionally, he said, to deal with extreme cold, the Delhi Urban Shelter Improvement Board set up 40 night shelters with 10 beds each for patients and their attendants.
The minister had also provided data on the faculty strength of AIIMS on the question asked by YSR Congress legislator Golla Baburao.
Jadhav told the House that against a sanctioned faculty strength of 1,306, only 860 positions were currently filled. Non-faculty staffing at the hospital also showed shortages, he said, with 11,369 personnel in position out of 13,911 sanctioned posts.