COIMBATORE: Looks like the ESIC Medical College Hospital in Coimbatore is not going to come up any time soon, thanks to the delay in signing an agreement between (ESIC) and the State government. Without the Memorandum of Understanding MoU, the Medical Council of India (MCI) cannot be approached for approval.
Even though ESIC had expressed willingness to jointly run the medical college with the government, there has not been any clarity over the issue.
However, the appointment of Dr B Asokan, Professor and Head of Plastic Surgery Department of the Coimbatore Medical College Hospital (CMCH), as the Dean-cum-Special Officer of the proposed ESIC Medical College is considered a step towards making the dream project a reality.
According to sources, in order to start a medical college, there must be enough patients as per the student-patient ratio prescribed by the MCI. However, the hospital is run by ESIC and there are only five lakh people who have insurance. The proposal to incorporate patients of Chief Minister’s Comprehensive Health Insurance (CMCHIS) scheme too for treatment at the ESIC Medical College has also not been confirmed yet. Under this scheme, free medical and surgical treatment is provided in government and private hospitals to the members of any family whose annual family income is less than Rs 72,000.”
Sources said that the patients' concerns have to be addressed first and later the requirements of staff, equipment and other resources.
Once all these concerns are addressed, a request can be given for MCI to hold inspection. The building available is enough to accommodate the college and hospital but there is no clarity over sharing of seats. “Usually, private medical colleges are supposed to provide 50 percent of MBBS seats to the State government except autonomous medical colleges. However, it is not so with ESIC medical colleges and there is no clarity over this. The building was constructed by the ESIC by spending Rs 600 crore and the State government is also not ready to pay the amount. The expenditure for providing salary to staff is also yet be addressed,” added sources.