Hyderabad: The govt’s aim is to ensure that public hospitals offer high-quality, state-of-the-art services comparable with corporate hospitals, said chief minister A Revanth Reddy on Monday.He was speaking after inaugurating the 1,082-bed Telangana Institute of Medical Sciences (TIMS), Sanathnagar, named after former chief minister Dr Marri Chenna Reddy. “As the costs of treatment in private hospitals has been rising, the TIMS has been started to provide corporate-level medical care at affordable cost to poor and middle-class patients,” added the CM.Built at a cost of ₹1,126 crore on 53.3 acres, the buildings of the super-speciality hospital are spread across 11.68 lakh sq ft. Developed by city-based Megha Engineering & Infrastructures Ltd (MEIL), the facility has 37 medical departments and includes 300 ICU beds, 88 emergency beds, 30 dialysis beds, 400 general beds and 100 beds for medical tourism.The hospital has 16 major and five minor operation theatres, a 3-Tesla MRI, 128-slice CT scanner, brachytherapy unit, CT simulator, endoscopy and bronchoscopy units, medical laboratories and a blood bank. “TIMS would be developed as a Centre of Excellence (CoE) in cardiac, renal, transplant and trauma sciences, bringing advanced infrastructure and technology together with the expertise of govt-sector specialists,” said director Dr Narendra Kumar A.Sanctioned in April 2022, the construction of the new facility officially started in Feb 2023. Officials said TIMS will initially take up non-emergency cases and gradually expand services. “Outpatient (OP) services will begin first, followed by inpatient services (IP) over the next few days. It will function as an extension of NIMS to help ease the latter’s patient load and bed shortage, while remaining an autonomous institution,” said Dr Kumar.While the govt has sanctioned 2,360 posts for TIMS, recruitment is yet to begin as the autonomous institute must first set up its own recruitment board, similar to NIMS. “Some posts sanctioned for NIMS are currently not required there, with the staff to be deployed at TIMS until its own recruitment process is completed,” said Dr Kumar.International wingOn the lines of private hospitals, an international wing has been set up at TIMS Sanathnagar for “medical tourism” with 100 beds earmarked for overseas patients. “We plans to use the facility to attract patients from within India and abroad and position Telangana as a major destination for advanced medical treatment,” said health minister Damodar Rajanarasimha.Speaking at the inauguration, the CM highlighted that the new Osmania General Hospital (OGH), two upcoming TIMS at LB Nagar and Alwal, and Warangal super-speciality hospitals would be completed by Dec 9, 2027. “These projects would together make another 10,000 beds available,” he added.Officials said the upcoming TIMS Alwal and LB Nagar are expected to be completed by Oct and Dec of this year, respectively.Annual international medical tourism conferenceMoreover, the health minister announced plans to establish a medical PG college at the hospital on the lines of NIMS. “An annual international medical tourism conference will also be organised at TIMS every year to bring global medical experts and organisations to Telangana. Revenue generated through medical tourism will be used for developing govt hospitals,” said Rajanarasimha.Deputy CM and finance minister Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka said ₹845 crore of the ₹1,126 crore construction cost of TIMS Sanathnagar had already been released. “Since we came to power in 2023, ₹8,922 crore has been spent or released for govt hospitals and medical infrastructure, including ₹3,880 crore for TIMS hospitals at Sanathnagar, Alwal and LB Nagar and other major super-speciality hospitals,” he added.Transport Minister Ponnam Prabhakar, Rajya Sabha MP Anil Kumar Yadav and others attended the inauguration.Key tech at TIMS SanathnagarPneumatic tube system: A network of tubes that quickly transports blood, lab samples and medicines across the hospital. It will send reports and samples between departments within about a minute, reducing delays, especially in emergencies.Modular operation theatres: OTs have been specially deisgned with antibacterial walls, anti-static flooring and controlled airflow. Officials said they are easier to clean and maintain, while the laminar airflow system helps maintain a sterile environment during surgeries.Anaesthetic gas scavenging system (AGSS): A safety system that removes waste anaesthetic gases released during surgeries. It will helps protect doctors, nurses and other OT staff from prolonged exposure to these gases.
