Primary health centres ailing

Divisional Commissioner Arun Bhatia said that show cause notices have been slapped on the erring medical officers and have been asked to submit an explanation within 10 days time.

“Besides they have been instructed to start living in the village of their posting from January 26, else their monthly salaries and house allowance will be withheld. Still, if the doctors do not comply to the notice, departmental enquiry will be launched against them,” said Bhatia.

Similarly, show cause notices have also been issued to the erring class three and four employees.

Giving the shocking details of the sanitary conditions of the PHCs, Bhatia said that in as many as 67 PHCs the lavatories were found to be in unclean conditions, while in another 52 the lavatories were found choked. Besides, patients wards in 45 PHCs were detected to be dirty and unhygienic.

“The respective medical officers of PHCs are in-charge of the cleanliness and hygiene of the centres. From the inspection it appears that they have not been taking care of this adequately,” said Bhatia adding.

The chief executive officers of all the zilla parishads have been instructed to assign this responsibility to the concerned employee and get the damaged lavatories repaired by January 15.

Bhatia also voiced his concern over insufficient follow-up of tuberculosis (TB) cases in the PHCs. “In 1997-98, 10,133 TB patients took treatment from the PHCs. Out of these 4678 were cured while 3,522 are still taking treatment,” he said. However, he said, there is no information about diagnosed 554 cases. “Arrangements are being made to trace these cases and look into their treatments,” he said.

He said that inadequate water supply was detected as a prominent problem in PHCs during the inspection. In 106 centres the water supply has been found to be inadequate, he added.