SAMBALPUR: With a third Covid wave imminent, inadequate infrastructure and trained manpower resources have raised posers on preparedness of Veer Surendra Sai Institute of Medical Sciences And Research (VIMSAR), Burla to tackle yet another crisis. The premiere healthcare institution of Western Odisha caters to health services of patients from the entire region as well as nearby states of Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand. However, many problems in its resource management has come to fore with the BJP raising critical issues.
Sources said, some of the lacunae that has restrained VIMSAR from providing proper patient care include lack of facilities at the Cancer department, absence of heart surgery facilities, problems in the functioning of department of Pathology and Radiology and inadequate number of ICU beds. This apart, some of the concerns raised by BJP members are delay in appointment of doctors for super-speciality department. Besides, with the third wave threat, lack of facilities at the Covid hospital in the institute and delay in providing RT-PCR reports are also serious concerns.
Official sources at VIMSAR claimed that steps are already underway to address most of the problems. While the plan for upgrading the existing Radiotherapy department has already been approved by the State government, the Covid hospital is being upgraded with necessary facilities. One of the hospitals is also being converted into a dedicated paediatric Covid wing. The testing capacity at the BSL lab at VIMSAR has been increased and now the reports are being given in 3 to 4 days.
The problem of ICU beds will also be resolved once the super-specialty wing is functional as it will have 60 ICU beds, they said. However, one of the resident doctor said, “Heart surgeries are not possible at VIMSAR as there is no cardiothoracic unit here. But other problems are due to delay in the appointment process. Though the super speciality wing is close to completion, the process for appointment has not begun yet. Patients are also facing delay in getting pathology and ultrasound reports due to dearth of staffs in the department.”
Contacted, VIMSAR director Lalit Meher said, “We have already written to the government to sanction posts for the new super-specialty departments ad are hopeful of early action.” On the other hand, BJP members at Sambalpur have threatened to stage dharna outside the office of RDC (NR) on August 2.