Geriatric centre to soon open in Jodhpur

JAIPUR: Almost six months after the Union health ministry announced to open eight super-speciality institutes for treating the elderly, the funds were recently transferred to the specified hospitals.
Jodhpur's S N Medical College is one of the medical colleges identified by the Ministry for the geriatric centre. While construction of the building will take some time, officials have decided to start the centre with pre-existing facilities.
Nodal officer for the geriatric centre (Rajasthan) Dr Arvind Mathur said, "We have received the funds and soon we will be able to open the centre in Jodhpur." Incidentally, the theme of WHO for this year's World Health Day (April 7) is also healthy ageing.
The geriatric centre will have a 30-bed ward for in-patient care and dedicated beds for elderly patients under surgery, orthopaedics, psychiatry, urology, ophthalmology and neurology.
The OPD block will have a laboratory with special sample collection centre. The geriatric centre will act as a tertiary healthcare centre to the cases referred from medical colleges, district hospitals and below.
The centre will have a professor of geriatric medicine, two assistant professors, four senior residents/medical officers, 16 nurses, three physiotherapists, one occupational therapist, medical social worker, lab technician, programme assistant, hospital attendant and sanitary attendant.
Also, the college has already started OPDs and physiotherapy for the elderly.
Officials claimed that they have started the process of recruiting staff for the centre. and as soon as they would complete the process they would start the centre with pre-existing facilities. Moreover, the officials claimed that they have purchased most of the equipment necessary for the centre.