BHOPAL (Madhya Pradesh): Doctors said that instead of stressing on digital platform in union budget, it would have been better has the Centre announced to set up Postgraduate Institute of Medical Education and Research (PGI) in Madhya Pradesh.
Government wants to rely on technology to bypass the need to undertake physical visits to doctors, carry prescriptions and wait in queues. The digital experience can be fine but only if the facility, doctors, patients, and systems work in tandem, doctors added.
PM Narendra Modi was appealed to develop Bhopal Memorial Hospital and Research Centre (BMHRC) like PGI Chandigarh. Civil rights and other citizen groups started a campaign to save BMHRC. BMHRC that was established in 2000 was developed as 350-bed super specialty hospital and had attracted best doctors from all over.
Dr Anand Rai said Madhya Pradesh has bitter experience of dismal performance of digital platform during pandemic time and vaccination. And condition in Madhya Pradesh is such that there is need to open PGI for research work related to Covid and other diseases. There are three in country such institutes in the country - Chandigarh, Lucknow and Rohtak.
After opening All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in Bhopal, it would have been better if the Centre would have announced opening PGI at any other place, Dr Rai said and added that it would have strengthen infrastructure in health sector.
Amulya Nidhi, health expert, said, it is high time to strengthen infrastructure in health sector. But nothing concrete has been done in this direction. The whole country faced brunt of Covid in last two years. So, under such circumstances, union budget should focus on concrete initiative in health sector.
