Bengal CM pays surprise visit to Swasthya Bhawan, reviews progress of hospital monitoring system

Kolkata, Jul 9 (PTI) West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari on Thursday paid a surprise visit to Swasthya Bhawan, the state health department headquarters, and reviewed the progress of a hospital monitoring system aimed at improving patient care. He said the live monitoring system has already been in place at 15-16 state-run hospitals in the city and a few districts, and directed the officials concerned to expand the facility to all sub-division hospitals by July 30. "I have directed that the live hospital monitoring system be expanded to all subdivision hospitals by July 30. The surveillance will not be limited to emergency wards and OPDs but will also cover kitchens, parking areas, fair price medicine shops and Janaushadhi centres to ensure transparency, cleanliness and better patient care," Adhikari said. He also said this will eliminate the activities of touts in government hospitals. After inspecting the monitoring facility, the chief minister held a meeting with senior health department officials and announced that 250 beds would be added to the state-run SSKM Hospital in south Kolkata before Durga Puja. He also directed officials to increase the hospital's ICU capacity from around 112 beds to 200 to reduce the burden on patients. The chief minister also stressed the need for strengthening emergency healthcare infrastructure and called for increasing trauma centre capacities to provide primary care to at least 250 patients simultaneously. He said such a facility was essential in view of major accidents and emergencies. PTI BSM BDC