ROURKELA: Seven years after becoming operational, the trauma and burn centre of Rourkela Government Hospital (RGH) continues to remain crippled due to shortage of manpower and medical facilities.After being made functional in 2016, the centre has been reportedly struggling to provide proper treatment to patients with traumatic and burn injuries in absence of adequate staff including doctors and facilities.
Though the centre has 12 beds each for trauma care and burn wards, other associated facilities are unavailable. The burn unit has an air-conditioned room but no ICU facility. It does not even have an autoclave. To sterilise equipment, autoclaves of other units of the hospital are being used. Besides, only one surgeon is available for patients, who is additionally in charge of other units. The burn unit grossly lacks paramedical staff. Similarly, the trauma care ward is managed by two surgeons.
The centre was set up on cost sharing basis between the Union and state governments. The centre initially released Rs 1.63 crore in 2007 and in subsequent years, matching fund was arranged to construct the new building. Provisions were made for posting of three specialist surgeons, an orthopaedic specialist, one anaesthesia specialist, three medical officers of ICU, six attendants and at least 10 staff nurses. Sources said apart from the shortage of specialists, posts of staff nurse are lying vacant while only a couple of attendants (dressers) are engaged to look after patients admitted to the centre.
Being an industrial and mining hub, Sundargarh district witnesses more incidents of road and industrial accidents. Patients with critical injuries having Biju Swasthya Kalyan Yojana (BSKY) card are immediately referred to higher treatment centres. Those not covered under BSKY are usually shifted to VIMSAR, Burla after brief admission, informed sources in RGH. Contacted, RGH director Santosh Swain claimed that trauma and burn centre is running normally with available manpower and resources.