Chemotherapy in all district government hospitals: Harish Rao

Laying the foundation stone for a 100-bed hospital at Choutuppal, which was taken up with an estimated cost of Rs.36 crore, Harish Rao said cancer patients required 30 to 40 sittings of chemotherapy as part of treatment.

Yadadri-Bhongir: Health Minister T Harish Rao said on Tuesday that chemotherapy facilities would soon be made available to cancer patients at all district government hospitals in the State.

Laying the foundation stone for a 100-bed hospital at Choutuppal, which was taken up with an estimated cost of Rs.36 crore, Harish Rao said cancer patients required 30 to 40 sittings of chemotherapy as part of treatment. They have been forced to go to hospitals in Hyderabad and other cities for chemotherapy, which was not affordable to poor patients. Keeping this in the mind, the State government had decided to soon launch chemotherapy services at all district government hospitals in the State, he added.

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Stating that the State government was committed to make quality healthcare services accessible to poor people in urban and rural areas also, he said 500 Basthi Dawakhanas were operating in the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) limits apart from Palle Dawakanas in the villages.

Institutional deliveries in government hospitals had increased to 64 percent from 30 percent in the last nine years, indicating the increased faith among the public in government hospitals.

Announcing that the KCR nutrition kits scheme would be launched in all 33 districts by the end of April, he said the State government had come to the decision based on the positive output in nine districts, in which the scheme was implemented as a pilot project.

Stating that medical education witnessed a sea change after the formation of Telangana State, Rao pointed out that the number of medical colleges in the State had increased from 20 to 55 in the last nine years. Postgraduate seats were also made available in government medical colleges at Suryapet and Nalgonda.

The State government had also sanctioned a nursing college and para-medical college to Suryapet and Nalgonda districts. A government medical college would also be established in Yadadri-Bhongir district, he added.
10,000 super specialty beds soon.

Stating that except Gandhi, Osmania hospitals and NIMS at Hyderabad, the earlier Congress government in the erstwhile Andhra Pradesh had not set up any super specialty hospitals in Telangana, Harish Rao said 10,000 super specialty beds would be available in the State soon.

This included 2,000 beds in the Warangal Multi Super Speciality Hospital, 4,000 beds in four super specialty hospitals to be set up in four sides of Hyderabad and 3,800 beds as part of the upgrade of NIMS hospital, with all these to be available in one year. Medical services in the Warangal Multi Super Speciality Hospital would be launched by the end of this year as well.

Stating that the 100-bed hospital was taken up in Munugode assembly constituency fulfilling the promise made by Chief Minister K Chandrashekhar Rao during the bypoll campaign, he said Chotuppal was chosen for setting up the hospital keeping in mind the necessity to provide treatment to patients in the area and those injured in road accidents on the National Highway as early as possible to save lives. A Critical Care Unit would also be set up in the 100-bed hospital at Choutuppal, he said.

Energy Minister G Jagadish Reddy, Munugode MLA K Prabhakar Reddy, Rajya Sabha member Badugula Lingaiah Yadav, Zilla Parishad chairman Alimineti Sandeep Reddy and Choutuppal municipal chairman Raju were present.