Union Minister for Health and Family Welfare JP Nadda attends BJMFCON 2024 hosted by Bihar and Jharkhand Medical Forum in New Delhi on Sunday, October 20, 2024 | Photo Credit: PTI
Union Health Minister JP Nadda on Sunday, October 20, 2024, said that he will not allow any dip in teaching and faculty standards in all newly constructed AIIMS institutions across the country as he vowed to protect the brand of the institution.
Addressing BJMFCON 2024, a forum of doctors from Bihar and Jharkhand practicing in the National Capital Region of Delhi, Mr. Nadda said AIIMS-Delhi was established in the 1960s but did not become a brand until the 1980s .
“It takes 10 to 20 years for any institution to become fully developed and functional. I will not allow the standards of AIIMS to be diluted and will protect its brand name,” Mr. Nadda said, adding that nothing would be done in this regard No compromise.
The minister also said that the foundation stone laying ceremony of AIIMS-Darbhanga will be held soon, while commissioning work of AIIMS-Deoghar has been completed and recruitment of staff is in progress.
Policy intervention in medical education
Mr. Nadda said that over the past 10 years, several policy interventions have been taken to transform medical education, “In the health policy of 2017, we tried to make it comprehensive and holistic. Previously, the focus was on the therapeutic aspect, But now the focus is on prevention, promotion, treatment, tranquility and recovery – a holistic approach.
Highlighting the government’s efforts in preventive healthcare and early detection of diseases in the country, he said there are 1.73 lakh high-quality Ayushman Arogya Mandirs in India that have undergone high-quality digital assessment. Among them, Bihar has established 10,716 Ayushman Arogya Mandirs and has so far received Rs 835 crore of tourists, while conducting non-communicable disease (NCD) screening of Rs 436 crore. Jharkhand has 3,825 similar facilities and the number of people screened for NCDs is Rs 233 crore and Rs 212 crore respectively. The facilities focus on early detection of non-communicable diseases.
Highlighting the progress made in maternal and child health, Mr Nadda said “in the first five years of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government, the institutional delivery rate increased from 78.9 per cent to 88.6 per cent”.
The minister also pointed out that the world’s largest Covid-19 vaccination program is being implemented in India, with more than 2.2 billion vaccine doses administered in the country.
Mr Nadda commended healthcare providers for their “tireless efforts to ensure access to care even in the most remote areas of the country” and highlighted their efforts and services during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Increase in the number of medical schools
He said that under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the number of medical colleges has increased by 98% from 387 before 2014 to 766 now.
A total of 157 district hospitals have been converted into medical colleges, of which 8 are in Bihar including Purnia, Saran, Samastipur and Jhajharpur, Siwan, Buxar and Jamui and 5 are in Dumka, Hazaribagh, Palamu, Chaibasa in Jharkhand and Chaibasa. He also emphasized that “Patna Medical College and Hospital (PMCH) is being redeveloped into the second largest hospital in Asia.”
He said that the number of MBBS (Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery) seats has increased by 125% from 51,348 before 2014 to 1,15, 412 now.
Pointing out that postgraduate (PG) seats have increased by 134 per cent from 31,185 pre-2014 to 73,111 currently, Mr. Nadda said, “under the Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (PM-JAY), the world’s largest The health insurance scheme has so far approved treatments worth Rs 86,797 crore.”
Nadda said as part of its commitment to healthcare for senior citizens, the government has extended the Ayushman Bharat PM-JAY scheme to all senior citizens aged 70 and above with healthcare benefits up to Rs 5 lakh.
The health minister also claimed that the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan has helped reduce child mortality, while the Ayushman Bharat health insurance scheme has reduced the out-of-pocket expenditure of the people.
Published – October 21, 2024 at 3:33 pm (IST)
