Medicare to the doorstep: YS Jagan launches ‘Family Doctor’ in Andhra Pradesh

LINGAMGUNTLA (Palnadu District): Taking healthcare to the doorstep of the people, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy on Thursday formally launched the Family Doctor programme in which qualified doctors in 10,032 Dr YSR Village Health Clinics would extend preventive health care to the needy across the State.

Launching the programme here, the Chief Minister told a public meeting that the Family Doctor Programme would herald revolutionary changes in extending healthcare to the needy. Just like the pensions are handed over at the households, the healthcare facilities will be extended to the people at their doorstep, he said.

Besides visiting the bed-ridden people and treating them, ‘Family Doctors’ will extend free medical treatment to people suffering from both communicable and non-communicable diseases and to lactating mothers and anaemic school children and women, he said.

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YS Jagan said that they would refer the patients in need of advanced medical treatment to Aarogyasri Network Hospitals while YSR Health Clinics would extend post-treatment healthcare to such patients.

The Government has brought about revolutionary changes in healthcare as it highly values the lives of people. With one Primary Health Centre (PHC) serving every 2,500 people, the ‘Family Doctor’ programme will soon turn the State into a role model for other states in preventive health care, he said.

Each mandal will consist of two PHCs while each PHC will comprise two doctors. One of them will take care of the out-patients and the other will visit YSR Health Clinics in assigned villages, schools and anganwadi centres twice a month, he said, adding that they would identify people suffering from BP, Sugar and anaemic conditions and provide them treatment in the initial stages to prevent serious heart and other diseases.

YSR Village Health Clinics, to be manned by Community Health Officers (CHOs), ANMs (Auxiliary Nurse and Midwives) and ASHA (Accredited Social Health Assistant) workers, would be equipped with 105 kinds of medicines, lab facilities to conduct 14 kinds of diagnostic tests and 936 Mobile Medical Units (104).

The phone numbers and other details of the doctors would be displayed at the Village Secretariats which would maintain health records and ensure that the medical services would be available round the clock, he said, appealing to the medical staff to stay in the villages where they are employed to serve the people round the clock.

Teach a lesson to the pack of wolves ganging up for elections

Asking the people to assess the good deeds of his Government, YS Jagan called upon them to become the soldiers of the YSRCP and teach a fitting lesson to the political wolves who are ganging up for electoral gains.

The Chief Minister asked the people to see the difference between the TDP and YSRCP rules in health, education and other sectors. Elaborating further that the medical procedures under the YSR Aarogyasri went up to 3,255 from 1,000 in TDP rule which avoided payment of Rs 800 crore to hospitals, he said that his Government had been spending over Rs18,000 crore every year on medical and health sector in comparision to the meagre Rs 8,000 crore spent by the TDP rule.

While the number of network hospitals under YSR Aarogyasri went up to 2,261 from 914 under the TDP rule, 3,57,1596 people were benefitted under the scheme in the last 45 months, he said. The Government has so far spent Rs 9,000 crores under Aarogyasri and Rs 990 crores under Aarogya Aasara alone making it an average of Rs 3,300 crore annually.

The Government has so far created 48,639 jobs in the medical and health field alone filling up 100 percent vacancies of lab technicians, general physicians and staff nurses and 96.31 percent vacancies of specialist doctors besides constructing 17 new medical colleges and keeping stocks of 562 sorts of WHO standard medicines in Government hospitals.

Making it clear that he did not know the political gimmicks of TDP which followed the policy of plunder, stash and devour and worked only for the scams, he said that the people are his only strength and he is working with the blessings of people and God.

While the TDP and their foster son (datta putrudu) are forging alliances for electoral gains with the support of friendly media, he is only depending on his alliance with the people, the Chief Minister said, asking them to stand by the YSRCP in the next elections.

In an unprecedented way, the Government has so far distributed to the people Rs 2,05,108 crore under various welfare schemes bringing happiness at every doorstep across the State.

In response to the appeal of the Minister for Medical and Health Vidadala Rajani, the Chief Minister granted Rs 63 crore to expedite the drinking water project at Chilakaluripet, besides agreeing to construct Ambedkar Bhavan and Community Bhavans for BCs and Kapus. He instructed the District Collector to provide the necessary three-acre land for the Muslim burial ground.

The Chief Minister also examined the Village Health Clinic established here and other stalls and interacted with the doctors and the Para Medical staff.