AMARAVATI: The need to bring about revolutionary changes in the health sector in the state was outlined by Andhra Pradesh government by setting up seven new medical colleges, eight super-speciality hospitals, one cancer hospital and seven nursing colleges.

At a review meeting on the implementation of Nadu-Nedu (Then-Now) programme in hospitals here on Tuesday, Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy said the number of teaching hospitals in the state should be increased to reduce staff scarcity and help in increasing the number of seats available for students. The officials informed that there was scope for setting up teaching hospitals in nine places.

The Chief Minister directed the officials to implement the proposal in four or five hospitals immediately. Each constituency should have such a hospital and they should be self-sustaining, he added. The bad state of affairs in the medical and health sectors at present was because the previous government had neglected them, he added.

The government is prepared to provide qualitative healthcare to the future generations, said the Chief Minister. He also reviewed the proposals for setting up health sub-centres and said that standards should be maintained in the works being implemented under Nadu-Nedu.

It was decided to take up development programmes in 1,138 primary health centres, 52 area hospitals and 169 community health centres under Nadu-Nedu programme and to set up new centres in some places. Similarly, Nadu-Nedu works would also be taken up in existing11 medical colleges, six teaching hospitals and 13 district hospitals.

The Chief Minister said that focus should be on super-speciality medical courses by dividing the state into five zones comprising Kurnool-Kadapa-Anantapur, Prakasam-Nellore-Chittoor, Krishna-Guntur, East and West Godavari districts and the North Coastal Andhra districts.

As managing all these colleges would be difficult by a single university, the Chief Minister said that three universities should be planned in the three regions of the state and added that there should be a comprehensive policy for their functioning. The staff requirement in the medical and health sector should be fulfilled by May, he said and WHO standards should be maintained in all the hospitals by April.

The third phase of Kanti Velugu programme would be launched on February 17 at Kurnool by the Chief Minister as part of Nadu-Nedu. He would also lay the foundation stone for health sub-centre. The third phase of Kanti Velugu would entail 10 lakh surgeries to be performed till July.

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