The BMC has also sanctioned 582 new nursing posts to fill the gap between patients and available nursing staff.
THE civic budget has little to offer as far as health services are concerned, with several old pending budget announcements repackaged this year.
Among major development projects, Rs 1000 crore has been allocated to Sion hospital for a multi-phased redevelopment of its 1,800 beds and Rs 340 crore to Nair hospital for upgrade of its existing buildings.
The KEM hospital is set to see expansion with two new towers, work for which is slated to begin this year. The towers will be utilised for academic, research and treatment purposes.
The BMC announced a new center to care for children with special needs. A budget of Rs 1 crore has been allocated for the centre in Nagpada to diagnose and treat deficiency, congenital defects, diseases and development delay in children. The center will be handled by Nair hospital.
The BMC has also sanctioned 582 new nursing posts to fill the gap between patients and available nursing staff.
Its latest project for thalassemia patients, which was announced last year, is under way in Borivali. Services for pediatric hemato-oncology, transfusion and chemotherapy have already begun.
Like every year, the BMC also plans to redevelop its 25 dispensaries, five maternity homes and three health posts in 2018-19 with a cost of over Rs 50 crore.