Thiruvananthapuram: Health minister K Muraleedharan on Monday said the state govt would implement the law ensuring minimum wages for nurses and take steps within a week to address the demands raised by nurses currently on strike in Thrissur.The minister told the assembly that the govt acknowledged the concerns of nurses protesting at Amala and Jubilee Mission hospitals in Thrissur and appealed to them to withdraw the agitation. “The govt accepts the demands raised by the nurses and will take them into consideration. Necessary action will be initiated within a week,” Muraleedharan said.The strike at the two hospitals has continued after talks between the United Nurses Association (UNA) and hospital managements failed to reach a settlement. The managements have maintained that a decision on minimum wages should be taken at the govt level.The minister also addressed concerns over medical negligence, stating that the govt viewed such incidents with utmost seriousness and would take stringent action against those found responsible. He said strict directions had been issued to ensure that incidents of negligence were not repeated in govt hospitals.As part of efforts to improve patient care, the govt plans to implement a surgical protocol across hospitals and take measures to reduce overcrowding. Hospitals have also been directed to discourage outside food and establish community kitchen facilities.Muraleedharan said orientation programmes were being conducted for doctors and other healthcare staff, while designated faculty members and nursing officers had been tasked with regularly updating patients’ relatives about their condition.The govt is also seeking to minimise the practice of accommodating patients on the floor in medical colleges by strengthening facilities at primary health centres and community health centres, thereby reducing the burden on tertiary care institutions.The minister said steps had been initiated to utilise underused spaces in medical colleges, construct new buildings, increase bed capacity, create additional posts and augment staff strength. He added that the staff pattern in govt hospitals would be revised to improve manpower availability and healthcare delivery.Muraleedharan also announced plans to modernise govt hospitals by mobilising corporate social responsibility (CSR) funds, noting that several institutions and media organizations had expressed willingness to support the state’s public healthcare sector.
