PUDUCHERRY: Puducherry Lieutenant Governor Tamilisai Soundararajan on Thursday directed the JIPMER administration to ensure free medicines to all patients below the poverty line in outpatients and in-patient departments by maintaining adequate stock of medicines.
Addressing the media after a two hour review at the JIPMER, following complaints of patients being given prescription to purchase medicines from pharmacies, the L-G said the administration has been asked to ensure that there is no delay in drug procurement and stocks are maintained so that patients, under any circumstances, are not denied free medicines.
When the administration cited non-availability of certain drugs due to delay in tender process during the pandemic, the L-G said it was wrong on the part of the institution to allow such a situation develop that even a paracetamol was not available, though there are provisions for emergency procurement of essential drugs.
The institute has been asked to open additional counters for patients above poverty line as the pharmacy inside the campus has been facing overcrowding due to lack of enough counters. said the L-G. The institute has also been asked to appoint a Public Relations Officer and do away with the Rs 10 levied as charge for using the night shelter for bystanders.
Dr Tamilisai said the PM-Jan Arogiya Yojana, which provides a health insurance coverage of up to Rs 5 lakh per family per year, has been made available at the institute for patients from the UT. The institute had also recently acquired Rs 40- Rs 50 crore worth equipment using Central aid, she added.
She also stated that JIPMER’s off-site campus in Karaikal would have a new building complex at an estimated cost of Rs 30 crore. Speaker R Selvam, minister AK Sai Saravanan Kumar, and Director of Health Dr G Sriramulu were present during the inspection.