TIRUCHY: Amid the delay in opening the 36 newly constructed health and wellness (H&W) centres in the city to public deferred allotment of staff, the state government, recently, allotted a total of 25 doctors for Tiruchy city.
Sources said the corporation had initially planned to open the H&W centres this February. However, the delay in allotting staff to the centres stalled the inauguration for the moment. The health team of the corporation have now heaved a sigh of relief after the state government announcement to allot as many as 25 doctors to Tiruchy city, said officials, highlighting the need for more doctors.
At present, as many as 18 doctors work in the 18 urban primary health centres (UPHCs) in the city. Once the additional recruits join service, the Tiruchy corporation would have 43 doctors under its belt, sources said. Despite this, the city would need at least 17 more doctors to cater to the needs at the UPHCs and the H&W centres about to open.
"Once the 36 H&W centres start functioning, a total of 54 health units will be functional in the city, including the 18 UPHCs. Even though 25 more doctors have been allotted for the city, we would still be falling short of at least 17 doctors, since six more UPHCs are in the pipeline for the city. We expect the state government to allot more staff soon," said a senior health officer. The 25 new doctors are expected to join the health team soon.