NT Reporter
Margao
South Goa district Congress members have urged the state government to strengthen the healthcare facilities at the Hospicio South Goa District Hospital (SGDH) in Margao, stating that it continues to function largely as a referral centre instead of the full-fledged district hospital envisioned for South Goa, with 10 to 15 patients referred to the Goa Medical College daily.
“It is a matter of grave concern that approximately 10 to 15 patients are referred daily from SGDH to GMC (nearly 300 patients per month). This 30km journey is life-threatening for critical or trauma patients. The high referral rate defeats the entire purpose of a District Hospital. Patients from lower-income backgrounds are forced to endure ‘nightmarish’ logistics because the Margao facility lacks the 190+ specialists and staff required to treat them on-site,” they said.
In a letter addressed to the director of the Directorate of Health Services, the secretary of the Directorate of Public Grievances and the medical superintendent of SGDH, they said the hospital was inaugurated as a state-of-the-art facility meant to decongest the Goa Medical College (GMC) but continues to refer a large number of patients.
“The Hospicio SGDH should not merely be a government building, because Hospicio Hospital was a sacred institution founded on the principles of compassion and community service,” they said.
They listed several facilities that they said remain unfulfilled, including specialised units for cardiology, neurology and nephrology, the absence of crucial diagnostic tools such as an MRI machine, limited bed capacity and the continuing referral of patients to GMC.
They also said that there is a shortage of medicines and consumables, and the hospital lacks dignity of care.
