The State Government would provide palliative care to cancer patients at district-level hospitals from the coming Gandhi Jayanti on October 2. The service would be provided in seven districts and at the Capital Hospital in Bhubaneswar in the first phase.
A decision to this effect was taken at a meeting held under the chairmanship of Health and Family Welfare Minister Naba Kishore Das here on Saturday.
The palliative care would be provided to cancer patients who are getting chemo regularly. Special beds and required medicines would be provided for such patient in district-level hospitals.
In the first phase, such services would provided at the Capita Hospital and at District Headquarter Hospitals in Baleswar, Bargarh, Kalahandi, Kandhamal, Koraput, Nayagarh and Sundargarh. All districts would be covered by 2020-21.
It was revealed that chemotherapy treatment is being provided to cancer patients in 26 districts and at the Capital Hospital. The treatment will be provided at Cuttack City Hospital, VIMSAR at Burla and MKCG Medical at Brahmapur and at hospitals in Puri, Malkangiri, Mayurbhanj, Deogarh and Angul districts.
The process for making the Chest and TB Department of the SCB Medical College Hospital would be expedited and DM syllabus would be introduced here, informed the release.
Besides, Health and Family Welfare Secretary and other senior officers will directly talk to patients over phone under the ‘Mo Sarkar’ programme from the Gandhi Jayanti.
It was decided to operate 15 centres at the proposed Cancer Research Centre at Baranga in Cuttack district by 2020.
Among others, Family and Welfare Secretary Dr Pramod Meherda, NHM Director Shalini Pandit, State Medical Corporation MD Yamini Saranig and Joint Secretary Guha Punam Tapas Kumar were present.