Karam Prakash
Patiala, March 25
Patients of spinal cord and traumatic brain injuries (TBI) are at the receiving end as there is only one government neurosurgeon in the state.
According to experts, spinal cord and TBI are common in road mishaps and such cases are generally rushed to government hospitals. In the absence of a specialist, these patients are referred to PGIMER, thereby, golden hours are lost and majority of patients lose life due to this.
Ironically, even tertiary healthcare institutes — Government Medical College and Hospital Patiala and Amritsar — don’t have neurosurgeons.
It has been learned that the lone neurosurgeon in the government health sector is posted at Guru Gobind Singh Medical College and Hospital, Faridkot.
Officials at the Government Medical College in Patiala said they had a neurosurgeon at the hospital, who resigned in 2020. Notably, owing to lack of a functional OT, he couldn’t perform even a single surgery and eventually had to resign. The Health Minister could not be contacted despite repeated attempts.
Low pay a reason
Health experts said super-specialists do not join government set-up due to ‘low salary’ and perks.
Only one neurosurgeon in state, patients at receiving end
{$excerpt:n}
