State set to allot 10 acres to medicos for housing complex

Kolkata: After announcing that the state government will allot 10 acres to the doctors and nurses free-of-cost to set up their own housing complex, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Thursday said it was the duty of the state government to ensure comfort of the doctors and para medicos.

"We have given land to the IPS, IAS, WBCS officers but this is for the first time when land will be allotted to the doctors and nurses who have made us proud by offering selfless service. It is the duty of the state government to ensure comfort to the doctors and para medicos," Banerjee said, during her visit to SSKM hospital, where she held a meeting with the hospital authorities to find out ways and means to upgrade the health care system across the state.

The state Health secretary NS Nigam, doctors, nurses and senior officials of SSKM were present in the meeting. Firhad Hakim, chairman Board of Administrators Kolkata KMC, was also present at the meeting. Talking to media persons, Banerjee said she had asked Hakim to find land for the purpose. Banerjee will hold a meeting with the principals of five medical colleges in the city at SSKM on September 16.

An eleven-storeyed hostel building (G+10) will come up on Lee Road for the students of SSKM. Another 7-storeyed building (G+ 6) will come up at Hastings where quarters of the principals of different medical colleges and secretary-level officers of the state Health department will be set up.

Steps will be taken to connect the buildings that are situated at SSKM complex to that of the doctors and the paramedics so that they could move easily from one building to another.

The Chief Minister also announced that senior and experienced nurses would be promoted to a post of "Practitioner Sisters".

The post would be a newly created one and it has been decided in the meeting headed by the Chief Minister with senior health department officials at SSKM Hospital.

"Sisters, based on their performance and experience, would be promoted to the post of Practitioner Sisters. The state Health department would frame a guideline in this regard," the Chief Minister said at SSKM where she held the meeting on Thursday.

The state Health department is preparing a guideline to train up the senior sisters so that better care can be given to the patients.

The Health department would prepare a standard operating procedure (SOP), which will be followed by the sisters.

The state government is considering a proposal to engage quack doctors in the Primary Health Centres and discussions will be held to ascertain whether this can be implemented. A move has also been taken up to set up a parking lot for doctors of SSKM Hospital where the proposed cancer hospital would come up and a footover bridge would be constructed connecting the parking lot with the main campus of SSKM Hospital.