Dr. Khalid Majeed
Healthcare is the basic need of every human being. Health is wealth goes the old age adage. In the Pandemic Coronavirus which wreaked havoc across the globe the importance of health sector has been brought to the fore. The masses are realizing that health is of utmost importance for all.
Jammu and Kashmir’s health sector was lagging in almost all the parameters and in most instances in shambles. Government of India has embarked upon setting up world-class hospitals in Jammu and Kashmir.
We all are aware of the fact that All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) is a name synonymous with excellence and quality in healthcare delivery. It has become a global brand and leveraging on the existing AIIMS. The government has stepped ahead to shape up a group of premier public health medical institutions in India which will be forerunners in the field of quality medical education training and providing robust patient care to millions of people.
In a series of establishing ‘AIIMS-like’ organizations all over the country, the legacy has now reached at the doorsteps of people in Jammu & Kashmir with establishment of this prestigious institute in Vijaypur town of Samba district- a first of its kind and the first of two proposed for the erstwhile state of Jammu & Kashmir including Ladakh region.
The people of Jammu and Kashmir with full heart have welcomed this development. Just few time back we came to know that, AIIMS Awantipora was approved by the Centre in 2019 at an estimated cost of Rs 1828 crore. Moreover, the first batch of students will be admitted this year for the AIIMS in the upcoming NEET-UG. The institute will add 1000 beds to its current capacity in Kashmir, including 300 super-specialty beds. The ambitious project also includes a Medical College with a capacity of 100 students and a Nursing College with a capacity of 60 students.
Experts on ground zero have opined that such medical institutes will not only help in providing better health facilities to citizens but also resulted in a substantial increase in the number of medical seats and the overall number of doctors in the country.
Rural health care which is the heart and pulse of the health sector of any region is been given paramount importance by the Government. The government of Jammu and Kashmir is taking multiple steps to improve the status of rural Healthcare.
Data accessed by a local daily revealed that 2224 Health and Wellness Centers have been established in the last four years. By the end of the current year, the administration will achieve the target of 2742 centers in Jammu and Kashmir.
Moreover, in the last five years, funding of Rs 2897.27 crore has been released by the Centre under National Rural Health Mission to raise infrastructure in rural areas.
In a recent step taken by the Government of Jammu and Kashmir aimed at revolutionizing the entire health sector of Jammu and Kashmir, the Health and Medical Education department of Jammu and Kashmir has issued an order canceling all attachments of doctors/ paramedical staff. The order states that the step has been taken to ensure better healthcare facilities for the public and to streamline the healthcare facilities in rural areas.
The order was issued by the Principal Secretary J&K Health and Medical Education (HME) Department Manoj Kumar Dwivedi.
It was believed and proven right on ground that The Doctors and Paramedical human resources being posted at a given place and then attached to some other place have over the years hurt the rural health care of Jammu and Kashmir in a brazen manner. People are fully delighted with both the reforms taken to improve public health care and setting excellent hospitals in Jammu and Kashmir.
Above all, it is important and pleasing to note earlier there were only four medical colleges in Jammu & Kashmir, today seven new medical colleges have been established. Earlier there were 500 medical seats, now 2,000 students can pursue MBBS degrees from J&K.
