E-Paper
Shortage of critical staff crippling hospitals in Chandigarh
The data on these alarming vacancies was presented in Parliament on Friday following questions raised by MP Manish Tewari, who also inquired about the delay in promotions, timelines for filling existing vacancies, and the proposal for creating additional posts.
A severe and persistent staff crunch has brought Chandigarh’s premier government healthcare institutions—the Postgraduate Institute of Medical Education and Research (PGIMER), Government Medical College and Hospital (GMCH-32), and Government Multi-Specialty Hospital (GMSH-16)—to a near-crisis point.
The data on these alarming vacancies was presented in Parliament on Friday following questions raised by MP Manish Tewari, who also inquired about the delay in promotions, timelines for filling existing vacancies, and the proposal for creating additional posts.
The situation is gravely impacting patient care, with nurses at PGIMER’s general wards forced to handle over 30 patients, a devastating contrast to the official Staff Inspection Unit (SIU) standard of 1 nurse for every 6 patients. This crisis is especially concerning given the aspirations for improvement in the tricity’s healthcare sector.
Dire nurse-patient ratios
The shortage of nursing staff is widespread and severe across the city. GMCH-32 reports the highest percentage of vacancies, with 281 out of 1,264 sanctioned posts lying vacant, representing 22%. GMSH-16 is also struggling, with 30 vacancies out of 154 posts, a 19% deficit. Though PGIMER has a lower vacancy rate of 9.5% (247 out of 2,597 posts), the issue of staff crunch is the gravest here because the patient load has increased dramatically without a corresponding revision of sanctioned posts since 2010. The poor staffing is acutely felt in critical areas: in PGIMER’s ICU, one nurse handles three patients instead of the SIU standard of 1:1. In operation theatres (OTs), the situation is so bad that sometimes there aren’t even two nurses (one circulatory and one assistant, as recommended by the SIU) available for a single OT; during evening shifts, one circulatory nurse may be handling multiple OTs. Beyond nursing staff, the city’s hospitals are also falling short of paramedical staff: GMCH-32 has a staggering 30% vacancy, GMSH-16 26%, and PGIMER 14%. The situation at GMSH-16 is critical enough that students doing their internship are predominantly seen at the blood sample collection centre, with hardly any regular paramedical staff present.
Explosive patient load meets stagnant manpower
The severity of the staff crunch is a direct consequence of soaring patient numbers against stagnant staff capacity, particularly at PGIMER. In the last decade, the institute’s OPD patient rush has surged by 35.5%, increasing from 20.01 lakh (2,001,911) in 2013-14 to 27.12 lakh (2,712,638) in 2023-24. Over the same period, the number of admitted patients has risen by 29%, while the nursing staff capacity has remained unchanged since 2010. The institute’s last major recruitment drive for nurses was in 2017. Although the institute recruits nurses from its own nursing school, that process is currently pending for the current year. PGIMER has submitted a proposal to the ministry of health and family welfare to create at least 1,500 new sanctioned posts for nursing staff, but a positive response has not yet been received.
Regarding GMSH-16, the director health services, Dr Suman Singh, stated that the process of recruitment for nursing and paramedical staff is underway, and they anticipate advertising for the vacant posts within six months. However, the director principal of GMCH-32, Dr GP Thami, did not respond to multiple attempts for comment. PGIMER officials too remained unavailable for comment. The failure to fill vacancies and revise sanctioned posts despite the increased patient load is the stated cause for the compromised patient care across the city’s government hospitals.
Box: Healthcare running too lean
Hospital Sanctioned strength (nurses) Vacancies Sanctioned strength (paramedical staff) Vacancies
PGIMER 2,597 247 (9.5%) 856 120 (14%)
GMCH-32 1,264 281 (22%) 330 86 (26%)
GMSH-16 154 30 (19.48%) 233 70 (30%)
