RSP on lookout for private player to run super specialty hospital

ROURKELA: The Rourkela Steel Plant (RSP) has renewed efforts to rope in a private partner for managing the newly-constructed Ispat Post Graduate Institute and Super Specialty Hospital (IPGI&SSH) after AIIMS and other institutes of the Health Ministry reportedly declined the offer. 

RSP sources said decision for entrusting the operations of IPGI&SSH to a private player is a compulsion with SAIL having no medical expertise and experience to shoulder such a huge responsibility. Top officials of RSP and SAIL had approached 18 major medical institutes and hospitals in private and government sectors across the country for operation and maintenance partnership. But, none agreed. 

Subsequently, Rourkela Ispat Trust (RIT), formed to run the facility, had floated a fresh request for proposal (RFP) in April to seek collaboration from the private sector. After closing of tender on June 6, it was learnt that only two bidders have applied. Earlier, in February 2020 the RIT had floated similar RFP but was unsuccessful. 

In 2015, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had promised to upgrade the RSP-run Ispat General Hospital (IGH) into a super specialty hospital and medical college. With AIIMS acting as mentor, the process for setting up the 300-bed IPGI&SSH had begun around 2018 with investment of about Rs 295 crore.

Despite uncertainty over its functioning, the IPGI&SSH was inaugurated with stop gap arrangement by President Ramnath Kovind in March last year. It was only in the last three months the indoor and outdoor services in five specialist departments - Cardiology, Cardio Thoracic & Vascular Surgery, Neurology, Neurosurgery and Nephrology- started with appointment of 11 doctors including six super specialists and 110 para-medical personnel.     

On the other hand, former general secretary of Steel Executives’ Federation of India (SEFI) Bimal Bisi reiterated the demand for takeover of the IPGI&SSH by AIIMS and said the facility getting run as a private entity would be of no help for the poor patients who cannot afford treatment cost.