Chandigarh: GMSH-16 to soon offer dedicated ambulance service for senior citizens
Six caretakers will be hired by Chandigarh administration to help the patients without any attendants; the caretakers will help and assist the patients in wheelchair, getting their medicines and getting tests done
The Government Multi-Specialty Hospital (GMSH), Sector 16, Chandigarh, will soon offer a dedicated ambulance service for senior citizens and bed-ridden patients, and designated caretakers to help patients without attendants, said an official on Saturday.
The decision came after the governing body meeting of the Rogi Kalyan Samiti (RKS), the patient welfare committee, was held under the chairmanship of Congress MP Manish Tewari on Saturday. During the meeting, several issues were discussed and approvals to all agendas were given on the condition of financial viability.
To get on with the services, six caretakers will be hired under the RKS fund to help the patients without any attendants. The caretakers will help and assist the patients in wheelchairs, getting their medicines and getting tests done. Further, a help desk for the assistance of patients in OPD, emergency and gynaecological ward will be set up, and data entry operators will be hired for the registration counters.
First 24 hrs free treatment to emergency patients gets nod
The proposal to provide free treatment for first 24 hours to all emergency patients at the hospital, which has been run on a pilot basis till now, was also discussed and approved during the meeting. The initiative, brought in by the executive committee of Rogi Kalyan Samiti in 2023, aims to provide free-of-cost treatment, including injections and all medicines, at critical times to emergency patients irrespective of the poverty line. The initiative has been further continued by the governing body.
Meanwhile, Tewari raised concerns over the financial liability of the services and whether the committee would have to pay income tax or not. Tewari emphasised the need for greater transparency in budget spending. He urged officials to provide clear details on fund allocations and expenditures to ensure optimal utilisation of resources for patient care and hospital improvements. Deputy commissioner (DC) Nishant Kumar Yadav said the RKS has been exempted from income tax for a certain period of time. It’ll need to be checked whether the committee has any income tax liability or not. The health officials did not have the income tax-related file of the RKS in the meeting, therefore the governing body has further suggested checking the financial liability to provide these services.
The meeting was attended by mayor Harpreet Kaur Babla, health services director Suman Singh and other senior officials and members of the committee.
The Rogi Kalyan Samiti, a registered body, has been set up under the National Rural Health Mission (NRHM) to provide sustainable quality healthcare services with transparency.