Srinagar: Jammu and Kashmir Apni Party leader Syed Tajallah Andrabi on Monday visited Primary Health Centre (PHC) Parigam in Pulwama to assess its condition and working after local residents shared their concerns about certain problems plaguing the smooth functioning of the PHC.
Syed Tajallah, who represents the J&K Apni Party as its General Secretary for Pulwama district, during the visit pointed out that a major problem was a severe staff shortage.
While speaking to KNT, he said that the building of the PHC has been built, but the staff shortage has literally kept it non-functional. He cited the example of an X-ray machine which was lying defunct as there was no technician to operate the same.
“If a doctor prescribes an X-ray to a patient in the PHC, he/she has to go to Pulwama town for the same and then come back for treatment. The irony is that PHC Parigam has an X-ray machine and not the technician to operate it,” he rued.
He stated that the list of problems includes a peculiar duty roster. “There are four paramedical staff members in the PHC. However, two among them are performing their duties in Pampore and another in Kakapora. The remaining paramedical staff member is a Kashmiri migrant, who doesn’t perform her duties.”
The PHC’s ambulance driver has also been reportedly performing his duties in Kakapora for quite some time, which has added to the woes of the patients in the vicinity.
Pertinently, the PHC Parigam caters to a large portion of population and includes villages like Wanpora, Parigam, Khalisa Parigam, Jagir Parigam, Urwan and other adjacent villages.
The young politician said that the administration needs to address the staff shortage problem, as the health centre looked more like a clinic, given the staff shortage and peculiar duty roster.
He appealed the district administration as well as the health minister, Sakina Masood Itoo, to verify why the PHC’s staff draw salaries from the facility while they perform their duties elsewhere. He also requested for increase in the staff strength, especially doctors and technicians.
Meanwhile, local people expressed relief that their plight was finally noticed and welcomed the visit as a step in the right direction.
An elderly local resident said that the PHC is not functioning properly without proper staff. “The existence of mere building and a lone doctor in the health centre is really worrying. The paramedical staff posted here is performing their duties in other PHCs. Even the ambulance driver has been asked to report in Kakapora for quite some time,” he said with a visibly dejected face. (KNT)
