Senior doctor Haris Chirakkal has praised the Kerala government's decision to stop accommodating patients on hospital floors at state-run medical college hospitals.
Dr. Chirakkal, head of the urology department at Government Medical College Hospital in Thiruvananthapuram, described the move as a very humane one in a Facebook post on Sunday. He congratulated Health Minister K. Muraleedharan for taking concrete steps to resolve the issue.
The doctor stated that it is unacceptable to push critically ill patients under hospital beds or into corners of corridors. Patients referred to major hospitals with life-threatening illnesses deserve a clean place and a bed, he added.
Dr. Chirakkal suggested shifting some departments to the Pulayanarkotta hospital campus to ease overcrowding. He also proposed upgrading the General Hospital and Women and Children Hospital in Thycaud into medical colleges.
The minister had announced that the fever clinic at the medical college hospital would be shifted to Pulayanarkotta Chest Disease Hospital, where around 200 beds will be arranged. A new block will also be constructed at the Government Medical College Hospital in Kozhikode using CSR funds.