A Parliamentary Committee on empowerment of women has objected to the lack of any separate indoor facilities for women patients at the premier All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS).
The committee visiting the hospital felt that there was an acute shortage of space in the Paediatrics and Gynaecology wards of the hospital.The Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology at AIIMS makes 85 beds available. On an average, 40 per cent patients admitted in private wards are females. The picture is much the same for the total indoor hospital clientele.
The committee observed that acute shortage of space has even resulted in the breach of privacy of the female patients. It also noted that there was no proper arrangement for the attendants of patients to wait while the women were under treatment.
AIIMS staff told members of the visiting committee that in the last 40 years there had been no increase in the space provided for the Paediatric General Ward. The staff also informed them that a proposal for a separate Gynaecology wing with additional beds was pending for the last six years.
The committee learnt that there is a proposal for a redevelopment plan for future expansion of AIIMS that includes super speciality blocks at the vacant land of Masjid Mod campus of the hospital.
The committee tabled its report in Lok Sabha last week.
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