Increase hospital beds, hire medical staff, Punjab government tells DCs

Manav Mander

Tribune News Service

Ludhiana, June 26

In view of a surge in Covid cases in the state, several measures are being taken to tackle the emergency situation.

• Also read: 188 fresh Covid cases in Punjab, most from Ludhiana

The districts have been asked to increase the bed capacity in their Covid care centres. The honorarium to be paid to the hired medical staff has also been increased.

The present bed capacity of 500 in the care centres of Ludhiana, Amritsar and Jalandhar should be enhanced to 1,200 each, the respective Deputy Commissioners have been told. The total operational beds in the centres will be enhanced to 7,000 by June 30. Keeping in view the continuous rise in the positive cases in Jalandhar, the Deputy Commissioner has been asked to identify an additional care facility with a capacity of 1,000-2,000 beds.

Further, to address the problem of shortage of medical manpower to operationalise the centres, the honorarium paid to the medical staff will be increased. They will be paid on a monthly basis and the initial contractual agreement will be for a period of three months with a provision of extension depending upon requirement.

In order to engage the staff at the earliest, the district administrations have been asked to advertise walk-in interviews immediately. The districts have been asked to give preference to MBBS doctors and in case of unavailability, BDS doctors can be hired.

The recommended honorarium for an MBBS medical officer is Rs 1,10,100, for BDS officers is Rs 80,000 and for Ayurveda officers, it is Rs 60,000. For paramedical staff (nurses, lab technicians and pharmacists), the honorarium is Rs 35,000, and for ward attendants, it is Rs 25,000 per month.

The districts have also been asked to maintain a waiting list of medical manpower to be given appointment in case of shortage due to attrition or some medical professionals getting infected.

The decisions were taken during a meeting held under the chairmanship of Satish Chandra, Additional Chief Secretary (Home).