In a region where more people die of the road accidents than in militancy,it must come as a shock to most people that the whole of Jammu province has just two neurosurgeons to attend the critical head injuries. With a neurosurgery department nowhere in the sight,sources said that these two neurosurgeons dont get even the basic infrastructure like operation theatres on time to operate upon the patients. Sources in the hospital said that the functioning of the Neuro-Surgery has been severely limited with the shortage of doctors,manpower and the basic infrastructure required for highly sensitive operations. Sources revealed that presently neurosurgery has been clubbed with general surgery and it has to share the infrastructure of General Surgery,which is hardly available for the neurosurgeons on a regular basis. Sources added that the lone two neurosurgeons have to virtually beg for the operation theatre for carrying out the routine neurosurgeries. With no separate department,the Neurosurgery unit doesnt have the required infrastructure of its own to work in a proper manner. While in the Sher-e-Kashmir Institute of Medical Science,Soura,there is a full-fledged Department of Neurosurgery,but in GMC,even the Neurosurgery Unit lacks neurosurgeons and infrastructure to perform the routine neurosurgeries in a proper manner. In the past,there have been many instances when patients have died due to non availability of the Neurosurgery on time,revealed sources. With much of the state having a hilly terrain,head injuries on account of the road accidents and falls from heights are quite common,especially in the hilly districts like Doda,Kishtwar,Rajouri and Poonch. With no neurosurgeon available at the district level in Jammu province,many of the patients with critical head injuries die en-route to the main referral hospital of the province,which is itself battling for proper infrastructure. During the last four to five years,more than 4000 people have died in more than 16000 road accidents in the state,which gives a rough idea about the number of patients receiving head injuries. When I received the head injury during a road accident in Janipur some months back,I was told by friends that I should get specialist treatment from outside the state and get myself properly checked. GMC lacks proper healthcare with regard to head injuries and no body wants to take a risk when it comes to ones head, said Bhupesh Bhat from Janipur. When contacted,the main neurosurgeon at GMC Dr Haroon Salaria admitted that it is quite difficult for them to manage the rush of the patients from the across the province,with the kind of the basic infrastructure they have been made available in the hospital. We have to virtually battle for the operation theatre,which remains busy with the general surgeries. Generally,we are given operation theatre once a week for carrying out the routine neurosurgeries, he added. In other units of the hospital,there is faculty of five to six doctors,specialists and Head-of the Department (HOD) but Neurosurgery unit lacks even neurosurgeons. Sources said that due to the indifferent attitude of the authorities,efficient doctors are not able to deliver their best. Most of the patients with brain disorders and head-injuries are being referred outside the state to places like Delhi and Chandigarh. Medical experts pointed out that there is a dire need to appoint sufficient number of neurosurgeons and set up a full-fledged Department of Neurosurgery in GMC.
