South Goa District Hospital mulls nursing college shift amid bed crunch
Bed Shortage
Margao: To address the acute shortage of beds at South Goa District Hospital (SGDH), authorities are considering shifting the nursing college currently operating from the hospital’s fourth floor to the old Hospicio premises in Margao.
If implemented, the proposal would free up the entire fourth floor for patient care at a time when the hospital is struggling to accommodate the growing number of patients. Some patients are currently being accommodated on stretchers and wheelchairs reportedly due to the shortage of beds.
Speaking to TOI, sources said the nursing college, which began functioning from the fourth floor last year as a temporary arrangement pending identification of a permanent location, may be shifted to the old Hospicio hospital in Margao. The proposal is still at a preliminary stage. If implemented, it would free up the entire fourth floor for patient care.
The old Hospicio hospital currently houses a paediatric palliative care unit, while portions of the heritage structure remain in a dilapidated condition, according to sources. Meanwhile, the hospital administration is making arrangements to provide reclining chairs for patients who cannot be accommodated on beds.
“We are making arrangements for reclining chairs to be provided to patients so that they are not made to sit on stools. This is purely a stop-gap arrangement, so that some relief can be provided to them,” said Dr Rajendra Borkar, medical superintendent, SGDH, as reported by TOI.
Borkar said the hospital has been witnessing a seasonal increase in patient admissions. According to him, patient numbers generally rise during the monsoon and post-monsoon period and are expected to decline over the next 15 to 20 days.
He said respiratory and gastrointestinal illnesses typically increase during the monsoon, while the seasonal transition has resulted in a simultaneous rise in viral, respiratory and gastrointestinal cases.
He said the hospital had limited options but to continue treating patients despite the constraints. “In such cases, we have limited options — send them to Goa Medical College, Bambolim, and make it choke, and GMC will send them back to us again, or send them home. The next best option is what we are doing — treating them within whatever constraints we face,” Borkar said.
According to Borkar, SGDH has limited options amid the increased patient load and continues to treat patients despite infrastructure constraints. Referring patients to Goa Medical College in Bambolim could add further pressure to the facility, while sending them home may not always be feasible.
He said SGDH largely receives patients requiring close observation, particularly those referred from primary health centres when their conditions cannot be managed at the peripheral level.
The medical superintendent added that the hospital operates at around 80% occupancy on average, highlighting the continuing pressure on available beds and infrastructure.
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