Speciality services launched at Manimajra Civil Hospital to ease patient load on major centres | Chandigarh News

Dr Singh said the initiative had already shown encouraging results. “We started these services recently, and the response from patients has been quite positive. Many cases that would otherwise have been referred are now being managed at the civil hospital itself,” she said.

Encouraged by the response, the Health Department is now considering expanding the model to other civil hospitals in the city. Sector 22 and Sector 45 Civil Hospitals have also expressed interest in adopting the same slot-based super-speciality services. The department has invited specialists to apply, and appointments will be made following a selection process in accordance with existing rules.

Officials said that depending on patient footfall and service demand, specialists from additional departments could also be inducted in the future. “If the numbers justify it and the system stabilises as planned, more super-speciality services can be introduced,” Dr Singh added.

Manimajra Civil Hospital currently has a capacity of 100 beds and caters to patients from Manimajra, Panchkula, Kishangarh and several neighbouring areas. The hospital houses departments, including gynaecology, medicine and general wards, along with an emergency unit that has 13 reserved beds. Patient inflow, particularly in trauma and emergency cases, fluctuates daily.

Hospital officials said referral decisions are made based on the clinical condition of patients. On average, one out of every two or three cases requires referral to GMSH-16 and GMCH-32, depending on the severity and nature of illness. With the introduction of super-speciality services, the referral rate is expected to decline, particularly for psychiatric, skin and paediatric cases.

In addition to clinical services, the Health Department is also planning to strengthen diagnostic facilities at civil hospitals. A persistent shortage of radiologists has meant that patients visiting civil hospitals often have to be referred to GMSH-16 or private diagnostic centres for imaging services.

If the plan progresses as scheduled, patients at Manimajra and Sector 22 Civil Hospitals will soon be able to access ultrasound and other imaging services without travelling elsewhere. The department is in the process of appointing radiologists to these facilities, which would ease access to diagnostic investigations, especially for pregnant women and critically ill patients.

With an increase in radiology manpower, services such as ultrasound, X-ray, CT scan and MRI referrals to private centres are expected to reduce. Officials said the success of the MRI centre launched under the public-private partnership (PPP) model at GMCH-16 has encouraged the department to explore similar expansions across other government health facilities.