03 February,2011 07:12 AM IST | | Kranti Vibhute
Following MiD DAY's report on absentee docs and inexperienced staff at its centre for treating the HIV-positive, the civic-run hospital recruited one doctor, after interviewing three
The state-run JJ Hospital seems to have taken notice of MiD DAY's report on the acute shortage of doctors in the ARTu00a0 (Anti-Retroviral Therapy, for HIV+ patients) Centre of JJ Hospital.
The hospital has now managed to get one doctor to work at the centre, after interviewing three candidates who had volunteered for the job.
One of the HIV+ patients had even complained about the rundown state of the centre to the National Aids Control Organisation. (Left) MiD DAY's report yesterday
MiD DAY had reported yesterday ('No docs at JJ to give medicines to HIV+') how HIV+ patients at the government-owned facility were suffering on account of the absence of doctors in the ART centre since mid-December.
Nurses and counsellors, that patients claim are inexperienced, were being relied upon to administer medication to patients.
Also, for any illness other than HIV, the patients - both first-time visitors and regulars at the Out Patient Department, some of them travelling long distances had no one to treat them or prescribe them medicines.
u00a0
One of the HIV+ patients had even complained about the rundown state of the centre to the National Aids Control Organisation (NACO).
'Untrained'
The doctor deployed in the ART centre, though, was not of much help, sources in the hospital said. "The doctor was not trained.
One of the staff nurses had to guide him on filling up patients' files and giving them medicines," a hospital worker said.
He added that, given the skeletal staff, the doctor in charge of the ART centre would be retained.
"We also heard that the tenure of Dr Alka Deshpande, a nodal officer of the ART centre, has been increased," he said.u00a0
Dr Deshpande confirmed that the doctors have been deployed in ART centres now.
