Kerala: ESI Corporation Medical College Hospital Paripally to start functioning

Kerala: Even though the state ESI Corporation Medical College Paripally has been denied permission by MCI to begin the MBBS course this year, the medical college hospital is expected to start operations from this month. This is the 9^th medical college hospital in the state and is planning to offer 100 seats for its first batch of MBBS course.

Hospital to start operations from August 9

Chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan will be present at the inauguration of the hospital on the selected date.

The first stage of the plan for making the hospital functional is to make the OP and IP wings operational. Following which, the emergency wing will be started. This will include functioning of the casualty wars and surgical procedures.

With a total project cost of Rs 540 crore, the basic infrastructural facilities, has been set up at Rs 218 crore. A media report confirms that Rs 218 crore has been spent so far. It is a 300-bedded hospital.

The concerned authorities are planning to increase the bed capacity to 500 and introduce addition facilities like library, equipment for the hospital and teaching, proper water supply, hostel facilities for students, etc.

Medical College update

Medical Dialogues team had recently reported that the government earlier this month, had taken a sudden decision to request MCI's permission to start the ESIC Medical College at Parippally so that 100 government MBBS seats could be made available this academic year. In an effort to again acceptance the government had quickly fulfilled all the necessary infrastructural requirements needed for starting the first year and had transferred faculty posts from Konni and the proposed new medical college at the capital to make up for faculty shortage. Interestingly, the government had earlier on taken a policy decision against launching the new medical college at Thiruvananthapuram on the General Hospital campus with 100 MBBS seats

The MCI inspection team had earlier visited the premise of the proposed medical college and cited faculty shortage as the prime reason. However, it is now confirmed that 32 doctors have been given appointment. Also, an order for recruiting para medical staff is expected to be given next week.

Dr K V Viswanathan, superintendent of Paripally MCH has further confirmed this news implying that close to 40 nursing staff and 40 para medical staff is expected to join the hospital in this week. Following their recruitment, the hospital has taken the decision to begin the OP and IP wings. There will be more recruitment done to provide 24 hrs emergency services also.

"Even though the MCI had rejected the proposal for the MBBS course in Paripally earlier, now this government has given a fresh proposal before the Lodha committee for recognition," said Rajeev Sadanandan, additional chief secretary (health) to TOI.

The state government is hopeful that the Lodha committee recommendation will be in favour of the new medical college. "If the committee recommendations are in favour of us then we will get the MCI nod. We have completed all necessary guidelines for beginning the first MBBS batch here," said Dr K V Viswanathan.

Total MBBS seats lots in the state for 2016-17

MCI has denied permission to both government and self-financing medical colleges for the coming academic year. If we just go by the figures, the medical aspirants in the state are likely to lose almost 650 MBBS seats.