AMARAVATI: The family doctor scheme aimed at taking medical services to the doorstep of people will be officially launched across the on April 6, Andhra Pradesh Health Minister Vidadala Rajini said on Saturday. Chief Minister Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy will officially launch the family doctor scheme on April 6, the Minister said in a statement.

The scheme which was supposed to be launched on March 15 will now be unveiled in the Chilakaluripeta constituency, where the Health Minister reviewed the arrangements at Lingamguntla ahead of the programme.

She explained that the family doctor system will be implemented as a village clinic center for every 2,000 population. The concept which is introduced at the village level with two PHCs for each mandal and two doctors in each PHC where one of these two doctors will stay in the PHC and provide medical services, while the other will go door-to-door in the 104 vehicles and provide medical services. Along with OP services, necessary medical tests are done free of charge for pregnant women, newborns, infants, and patients with various problems such as anemia. etc.

Twice a month doctors visit each village and provide these medical services. Anganwadi centers and students in government schools will be examined and medical services will be provided to them, she said. For patients who are unable to get out of bed, doctors go to their homes and provide free treatment and medicines.
As part of the family doctor pilot project, the State health department has so far extended nearly 46 lakh medical services to the people in Andhra Pradesh. Earlier, the health department said that it had appointed doctors in 1,149 primary health centres (PHCs). In the event of a long-term leave of these doctors, doctors from PHCs will be used and necessary additional appointments have also been made. As many as four additional doctors have been hired in every district for this purpose while an additional doctor has been hired for every six to seven PHCs to cover short-term leaves, resulting in a reserve of 175 doctors at the State level.

YSRCP MLCs Talashila Raghuram, Lella Appireddy, Medical and Health Chief Secretary Krishna Babu, APMS IDC MD Muralidhar Reddy, Arogyasree CEO MN Harendhira Prasad, District Collector Sivashankar and SP Ravi Shankar Reddy participated in this program.

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