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Yogi asks medical experts to stay 10 steps ahead of changing disease patterns
CM Yogi unveils organ transplant centre at RMLIMS, 40-bed emergency ward and MRI facility; says UP’s healthcare expansion must now focus on research, technology and timely treatment
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Chief minister Yogi Adityanath on Sunday asked the Ram Manohar Lohia Institute of Medical Sciences (RMLIMS) to move beyond the expansion of infrastructure and emerge as a Centre of Excellence.
He said the next challenge for Uttar Pradesh’s healthcare system is to ensure timely access to advanced treatment and reduce long waiting lists for critical procedures such as kidney transplants. He asked medical experts on Sunday to stay “10 steps ahead” of changing disease patterns and continuously upgrade research, treatment and diagnostic capabilities.
Addressing the institute’s sixth annual foundation day, the CM inaugurated its new organ transplant centre, 40-bed emergency ward and MRI facility. He said RMLIMS had grown from a 20-bed hospital into a 1,400-bed tertiary-care and medical education institution and stressed the need to integrate research, innovation and technology with patient care.
“Today, the issue is not a lack of funds; the biggest challenge is reducing the long waiting lists,” he said, particularly referring to kidney transplants.
The new transplant centre at RMLIMS is expected to benefit patients from eastern Uttar Pradesh, who continue to travel to Lucknow for kidney transplants despite the availability of dialysis facilities across the state. Adityanath said transplantation services should be expanded to include bone marrow, liver and other organs. A bone marrow transplant facility is also expected to become operational soon.
He also urged institutions to preserve and analyse Indian medical data rather than allowing research based on such data to be led primarily by Western countries. He cited the MedTech Centre of Excellence with IIT-Kanpur, the Centre of Excellence at SGPGI, the Medical Device Park and the Pharma Park as examples of initiatives aimed at strengthening research and medical technology in the state.
He said artificial intelligence could play an important role in healthcare.
Adityanath said the number of medical colleges in Uttar Pradesh had increased from 41 in 2017 to 85, while MBBS seats had risen from 4,690 to 13,600.
Government medical colleges increased from 15 to 45, with government MBBS seats rising from 1,990 to 5,350. Private colleges increased from 21 to 40, with private MBBS seats rising from 2,700 to 8,250.
He said around 9.5 lakh of the state’s 16.5 lakh government employees had been recruited during the past nine-and-a-half years.
He recalled that the neurosurgery department had sought a Gamma Knife facility during one of his earlier visits and said the facility was now being implemented.
He highlighted the institute’s STEMI Care programme, under which patients in 10 districts are receiving treatment for acute heart attacks.
Pathak targets previous government
Deputy chief minister Brajesh Pathak said RMLIMS had established a distinct identity in the state and the country within six years. He said the state was now training more than 12,500 doctors annually, compared with around 5,000 earlier, while MD/MS seats had also increased substantially.
He also launched a political attack on the previous Samajwadi Party government, alleging that contracts in institutions were awarded to relatives and associates of influential people.
The CM handed over appointment letters to recently recruited healthcare workers, released the institute’s annual progress report along with two books, Sahi Jankari Sahi Dekhbhal by Dr Ajay Kumar Verma and Critical Care Falls by Dr SS Nath, and honoured outstanding performers.
Minister of state Mayankeshwar Sharan Singh, additional chief secretary Amit Kumar Ghosh, RMLIMS director Dr CM Singh, dean Dr Rajan Bhatnagar and chief medical superintendent Dr Vikram Singh were among those present.
