Amt hospital shifts patients as nurses continue to strike work

Amravati: With the contractual and regular nursing staff at Dr Panjabrao Deshmukh Medical College and Hospital (PDMC) continuing to strike work demanding payment of salaries, health services have collapsed completely forcing the administration to shift patients elsewhere.
Harshawardhan Deshmukh, president of Shri Shivaji Education Society, which runs the hospital, on Thursday urged the nursing staff to join duty immediately in view of the gravity of the Covid situation in the district.
Addressing a press conference here, Deshmukh said the nurses went on strike without giving any intimation to the hospital administration. “The dean of PDMC talked to them on June 23 itself and understood their demands and even initiated efforts to solve them,” he said.
Deshmukh said due to the outbreak of the pandemic, financial health of the hospital has collapsed as income receded by 70% after flow of rural patients came to a halt. He said the hospital is in the red financially as Rs10 crore that were to come from students as tuition fee got blocked due to the pandemic and Rs13.70 crore state grant towards SC/ST and OBC students’ tuition fees has been pending since 2013-14.
“This has unbalanced the finances of the institution,” said Deshmukh.
The society president said the contractor has paid the contractual staff their salaries till May, while regular nurses and other staff will be paid salaries up to April 2020 in a couple of days. He said the demand of the nurses for hike in salary cannot be considered at the moment. “It depends on the financial situation,” he said.
Deshmukh said when entire world is bearing the brunt of the pandemic, education and health sectors have got affected hugely. Health sector is playing a very crucial and important role in this pandemic. “As such, cooperation of all is necessary to tide over the situation. I urge upon the nursing staff to join duty immediately, understanding the gravity of the situation,” he said.
SSES vice-president Dilip Ingole, secretary Sheshrao Khade and PDMC dean Dr Padmakar Somwanshi were present at the press conference.