Article contributed by Mr. Kounteya Sinha, Health Editor, Times of India
MANDLA (JABALPUR): More often than not, you've heard of government nurses making a beeline for private hospitals.
But in a reverse brain drain, 30 nurses from private hospitals in Madhya Pradesh quit last year to work in government-run sick and newborn care units (SNCUs) in Shivpuri, Burhanpur and Khandwa.
More applications are piling up in the state health department from private nurses wanting to work in the public sector in MP.
The catch: the state raised salaries of nurses from Rs 10,000 in 2010 to Rs 15,000 in 2011. It has proposed to increase their salary to Rs 20,000 from April 1. "Around 12 nurses from a private hospital in Indore joined the SNCU in Burhanpur, eight in Khandwa and 10 in Shivpuri. Nurses from private hospitals in Jaipur are applying to work in the SNCUs here," said a state health department official.
Doctors too are getting an early bonus. Every pediatrician working in these SNCUs now get Rs 38,500 - an increase from Rs 25,000 in 2009.
Under the new proposal, the salary of pediatricians will be hiked to Rs 45,000. They will also get an additional Rs 15,000 as intensive care allowance. MP has 34 SNCUs.
The sanctioned strength for every SNCU includes four pediatricians, 12 nurses, and two lab technicians.
"Against the sanctioned staff, the 34 functional units have an average of 3.5 pediatricians and 10.5 nurses across the state. From April 1, the number of nurses is being increased to 15 in every SNCU. To attract quality human resources in these units, MP has introduced major HR policy changes like enforcing of the rural service bond, where fresh post-graduate medical students are given a one-year compulsory posting at these units. Around 23 doctors are employed under this bond across 34 units," said Unicef's health specialist Dr Gagan Gupta, who helped MP set up its first SNCU in Guna in December, 2007.
According to Dr Gupta, between 2008 and 2011, 81,567 sick newborns have been treated in these units out of which 40,000 were treated last year. "Projected admissions for this year will be 60,000 children. The target is that by the end of 2012, there will be 50 SNCUs covering every district of MP," Dr Gupta added.
Doctors and nurses opting to serve in these SNCUs are being trained at two of the country's most prestigious institutes PGI, Chandigarh, and Maluana Azad Medical College, Delhi.
"The course in PGI on intensive care services is for two weeks while that in MAMC is for 40 days. It's free for the candidate," Dr Gupta said.
These SNCUs have worked wonders for MP's infant mortality rate (IMR). Union health ministry officials told TOI that the IMR of MP in 2010 has shown a fall of five points from 67 per 1,000 to 62 per 1,000 - the highest fall in IMR recorded for a state in the country and also the largest fall in a year in last decade, according to the SRS, 2010, data.
SNCUs are the major focus even for the Union health ministry to reduce the country's IMR.
According to the ministry's plan, all district hospitals will have a SNCU to handle critical neonatal cases over the next five years. They will mainly cater to children born at full term with low-birth weight. Low-birth weight babies have a greater risk for developing respiratory symptoms, including wheezing, coughing and pulmonary infections that increases their chances of mortality.
Of the 2.6 crore births in India annually, 23% of the babies are low weight (below 2.5kg). Survival rates of low-weight babies are as high as 85%, if brought to a SNCU "on time".
But lack of such units in every district hospital and sparse facilities in primary health centres causes loss of crucial time before a baby is brought to a SNCU. Union health secretary P K Pradhan told TOI that this year alone 100 SNCUs would be put in place, which is almost double of last year.
"We have 274 SNCUs across 10 states. In the 12th Five Year Plan (2012-17), every district hospital will have an SNCU," he added. SNCUs will target critical neonatal cases, and the poorest among poor will be able to access them. The facilities will be equipped with latest machines for pediatric care including radiant warmers, oxygen concentrator, infusion pump, apnea monitor and electronic weighing machines, treating acute cases like birth asphyxia, premature birth, neonatal jaundice, neonatal septicemia, complications of low-birth weight and extreme low-birth weight.
"Each SNCU will have an ICU complete with 12-16 beds, 16 trained nurses and three pediatricians working in eight hour shifts. It will cost Rs 40 lakh to set up each unit," Pradhan said.
Neonatal deaths are one of India's major health challenges. SRS, 2009, data suggests, early neonatal mortality (within seven days of birth) and neonatal mortality (within 28 days of birth) stand at 27,000 and 34,000 live births, respectively. These translate to 7.02 lakh newborn deaths within the first seven days of birth, and 8.84 lakh newborn deaths within 28 days of birth. NMR constitutes 68% of the infant mortality rate - of which early NMR accounts for 54%. The ministry has started a home-based newborn scheme to reduce the high NMR, where Accredited Social Health Activist (ASHA) will visit the homes of new mothers six times in 42 days to encourage safe newborn care practices and early detection and free referral of sick babies.
Link:http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Lured-by-higher-salary-nurses-make-a-beeline-for-govt-hospitals-in-MP/articleshow/11669606.cms
MANDLA (JABALPUR): More often than not, you've heard of government nurses making a beeline for private hospitals.
But in a reverse brain drain, 30 nurses from private hospitals in Madhya Pradesh quit last year to work in government-run sick and newborn care units (SNCUs) in Shivpuri, Burhanpur and Khandwa.
More applications are piling up in the state health department from private nurses wanting to work in the public sector in MP.
The catch: the state raised salaries of nurses from Rs 10,000 in 2010 to Rs 15,000 in 2011. It has proposed to increase their salary to Rs 20,000 from April 1. "Around 12 nurses from a private hospital in Indore joined the SNCU in Burhanpur, eight in Khandwa and 10 in Shivpuri. Nurses from private hospitals in Jaipur are applying to work in the SNCUs here," said a state health department official.
Doctors too are getting an early bonus. Every pediatrician working in these SNCUs now get Rs 38,500 - an increase from Rs 25,000 in 2009.
Under the new proposal, the salary of pediatricians will be hiked to Rs 45,000. They will also get an additional Rs 15,000 as intensive care allowance. MP has 34 SNCUs.
The sanctioned strength for every SNCU includes four pediatricians, 12 nurses, and two lab technicians.
"Against the sanctioned staff, the 34 functional units have an average of 3.5 pediatricians and 10.5 nurses across the state. From April 1, the number of nurses is being increased to 15 in every SNCU. To attract quality human resources in these units, MP has introduced major HR policy changes like enforcing of the rural service bond, where fresh post-graduate medical students are given a one-year compulsory posting at these units. Around 23 doctors are employed under this bond across 34 units," said Unicef's health specialist Dr Gagan Gupta, who helped MP set up its first SNCU in Guna in December, 2007.
According to Dr Gupta, between 2008 and 2011, 81,567 sick newborns have been treated in these units out of which 40,000 were treated last year. "Projected admissions for this year will be 60,000 children. The target is that by the end of 2012, there will be 50 SNCUs covering every district of MP," Dr Gupta added.
Doctors and nurses opting to serve in these SNCUs are being trained at two of the country's most prestigious institutes PGI, Chandigarh, and Maluana Azad Medical College, Delhi.
"The course in PGI on intensive care services is for two weeks while that in MAMC is for 40 days. It's free for the candidate," Dr Gupta said.
These SNCUs have worked wonders for MP's infant mortality rate (IMR). Union health ministry officials told TOI that the IMR of MP in 2010 has shown a fall of five points from 67 per 1,000 to 62 per 1,000 - the highest fall in IMR recorded for a state in the country and also the largest fall in a year in last decade, according to the SRS, 2010, data.
SNCUs are the major focus even for the Union health ministry to reduce the country's IMR.
According to the ministry's plan, all district hospitals will have a SNCU to handle critical neonatal cases over the next five years. They will mainly cater to children born at full term with low-birth weight. Low-birth weight babies have a greater risk for developing respiratory symptoms, including wheezing, coughing and pulmonary infections that increases their chances of mortality.
Of the 2.6 crore births in India annually, 23% of the babies are low weight (below 2.5kg). Survival rates of low-weight babies are as high as 85%, if brought to a SNCU "on time".
But lack of such units in every district hospital and sparse facilities in primary health centres causes loss of crucial time before a baby is brought to a SNCU. Union health secretary P K Pradhan told TOI that this year alone 100 SNCUs would be put in place, which is almost double of last year.
"We have 274 SNCUs across 10 states. In the 12th Five Year Plan (2012-17), every district hospital will have an SNCU," he added. SNCUs will target critical neonatal cases, and the poorest among poor will be able to access them. The facilities will be equipped with latest machines for pediatric care including radiant warmers, oxygen concentrator, infusion pump, apnea monitor and electronic weighing machines, treating acute cases like birth asphyxia, premature birth, neonatal jaundice, neonatal septicemia, complications of low-birth weight and extreme low-birth weight.
"Each SNCU will have an ICU complete with 12-16 beds, 16 trained nurses and three pediatricians working in eight hour shifts. It will cost Rs 40 lakh to set up each unit," Pradhan said.
Neonatal deaths are one of India's major health challenges. SRS, 2009, data suggests, early neonatal mortality (within seven days of birth) and neonatal mortality (within 28 days of birth) stand at 27,000 and 34,000 live births, respectively. These translate to 7.02 lakh newborn deaths within the first seven days of birth, and 8.84 lakh newborn deaths within 28 days of birth. NMR constitutes 68% of the infant mortality rate - of which early NMR accounts for 54%. The ministry has started a home-based newborn scheme to reduce the high NMR, where Accredited Social Health Activist (ASHA) will visit the homes of new mothers six times in 42 days to encourage safe newborn care practices and early detection and free referral of sick babies.
Link:http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Lured-by-higher-salary-nurses-make-a-beeline-for-govt-hospitals-in-MP/articleshow/11669606.cms
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