Maharashtra’s Healthcare in Shambles: CAG Report Reveals Critical Shortage Of Manpower And Infrastructure
Maharashtra's Healthcare in Shambles: CAG Report Reveals Critical Shortage Of Manpower And Infrastructure
A recent report by the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) has highlighted a critical shortage of manpower at every level of healthcare institutions in Maharashtra. The report reveals that there is a shortage of 22% of doctors, 35% of nurses, and 29% of paramedical staff in primary and secondary healthcare under the state Health Department.
The shortage is even more alarming in specialist doctors, with a 42% vacancy rate. The CAG report also notes that the overall shortage of doctors, nurses, and paramedics in the Health Department and Medical Education and Drugs Department stands at 27%, 35%, and 31%, respectively.
The report emphasizes that providing adequate and quality healthcare services to a large population requires a robust healthcare infrastructure and services. However, the public health infrastructure in Maharashtra is overburdened due to shortages of healthcare institutions, which are catering to the population in excess of the norms laid down by the Indian Public Health Standards (IPHS).
The CAG report also highlights the regional disparity in the availability of manpower and the failure to complete construction and upgrading work on healthcare institutions. For instance, 70% of the work for constructing new healthcare institutions and 90% of the work for upgrading healthcare institutions remains incomplete.
Furthermore, the report notes that patient-centric diet was not provided in 33 test-checked sub-district and rural hospitals, and the testing of food supplied by contractors was not done from the public health laboratory by 16 test-checked healthcare institutions.
The CAG has recommended that the government fill up vacancies in the health sector in a time-bound manner and increase the sanctioned strength of doctors as recommended in IPHS. The report also suggests that the government prepare a comprehensive plan to identify gaps in infrastructure considering the projected population and implement it.
