Srinagar: The Jammu and Kashmir government has taken a significant step towards enhancing healthcare services by increasing around 2000 medical seats to address the shortage of doctors and paramedics.
According to the News AIR report, as per Vision Document 2047 of the Health Department, the objective is to ensure the availability of quality and affordable healthcare services at the doorstep by rationalizing existing facilities and establishing new ones. Presently, the region boasts a robust public healthcare infrastructure, including over 4100 health facilities.
Several Primary Health Centres (PHCs) are also being upgraded to the level of Sub-District Hospitals (SDHs) to meet Indian Public Health Standards (IPHS) norms.
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Furthermore, Non-Traditional Public Health Centers (NTPHCs) can be elevated to the level of PHCs, and new Sub Centers will be established in remote and underserved areas, based on the actual requirements arising from population growth.
Efforts are being made to achieve full geographical coverage and implement IPHS/NMC norms at various facility levels, starting from the district level, it states, adding that over the past few years, more than 2000 medical seats have been added to improve the availability of doctors and paramedics.
The initiatives include increasing MBBS seats from 500 to 1100, adding 26 BDS seats under the Economically Weaker Sections (EWS) category in Dental Colleges, introducing 50 PG seats under EWS in Medical Colleges/SKIMS, and approving 38 Dental PG Seats in Dental Colleges.
Additionally, 250 Diplomate of National Board (DNB) seats have been approved in SKIMS Soura/Government Medical Colleges/District Hospitals/Sub-District Hospitals, along with 590 B.Sc paramedical seats in seven Medical Colleges and 440 B.Sc Nursing seats.
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