Dr Farooq, Tarigami, Beg apprise Lt Guv of ‘dismal picture’ of valley hospitals

Srinagar, Jul 21: A delegation of political leaders including Dr Farooq Abdullah, M.Y. Tarigami and Dr. Mehboob Beg on Friday submitted a memorandum to Jammu and Kashmir Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha, highlighting the “dismal picture” of the valley’s government health institutions.
The memorandum, reads that the Sher-e-Kashmir Institute of Medical Sciences, Srinagar (SKIMS) is facing a staffing deficit with hundreds of slots at various levels viz medical, paramedic, and administrative lying vacant.
They said there is a 50 percent shortage of all technical and nursing staff, adding that the recruitment has not been conducted for the last seven years.
“The recent decision of the government to divest SKIMS of its autonomous status has had an adverse effect on its decision-making process,” they said.
As per the memorandum, the leaders said the SKIMS was established in 1976 and formally inaugurated on December 5, 1982, with an initial bed capacity of 250. “Over the past more than four decades, it has made great strides and emerged as a premier institute to provide health care facilities to the people of Jammu and Kashmir. The bed capacity of SKIMS has risen to 1250 over the period, including the 129-bedded maternity hospital.”
“This top-tier institute ranks among the best medical institutions in the country. In the Northern region of India, it holds the prestigious position of being the second best institute after the PGI Chandigarh. Besides patient care, SKIMS provides training and quality research, it offers courses at undergraduate, postgraduate, and doctoral levels. The institute has produced doctors and researchers of the highest caliber besides hosting a flurry of national and international conferences,” the memorandum mentioned.
It stated that since its inception, the institute continued to add new milestones to its distinguished journey. However, the institute is beset with practical difficulties, which takes a toll on both patient care and its overall functioning.
The memorandum further stated that as of date, a total number of 1201 posts of different categories including 115 faculty positions,149 Gazetted posts, 870 Non-Gazetted and 67 positions of Senior and Junior Resident (doctors) are vacant.
The SKIMS has also been facing a distinctive challenge due to inadequate infrastructure and funds, the leaders said. “Of 3 CT scan machines, only one is functional while an old MRI machine has been out of order. There is no Linear Accelerator available with the facility. The equipment is crucial to administer radiation to cancer patients. The gynae hospital of the institute is facing acute space constraints.”
They said the institute has not made any significant advancement in robotic surgery; the memorandum reads that owing to the financial constraints. “Of the Rs 400 crore annual budget, around 70 percent is spent on salaries. The SKIMS is also running a paramedical and a nursing college.”
Besides SKIMS, the other premier hospitals are facing well-nigh similar issues. “Hundreds of posts are lying vacant in SMHS, Srinagar, and Children’s Hospital, Bemina. The top floor of the ward building of Bone and Joint Hospital Barzulla, the only such hospital in Kashmir, was damaged in a fire incident in 2022, but the hospital continues to operate out of the same building. Although the construction work on an additional 120 bedded block, funded by the World Bank has been taken up three years ago, it is yet to be completed. The building has missed several deadlines thus far.”
The district-level hospitals across Jammu and Kashmir paint the same dismal picture, they said, adding that in the absence of radiotherapy facilities in such hospitals, cancer patients have to endure immense hardships and have to seek treatment in Srinagar and other private hospitals which enhances their treatment cost.
The memorandum also mentioned that the shortage of manpower has not only placed additional strain on the existing staff in the SKIMS and other hospitals but also raises concerns over the quality of care being provided to the patients. Moreover, the lack of crucial equipment stymies patient care, it added.
It is important that the vacant slots be filled on a fast-track basis to ensure the seamless functioning of these premier hospitals, the memorandum read.