Govt to equip Ayush doctors the same facilities as to allopathic doctors

The Union health and family welfare ministry has asked the state National Rural Health Mission (NRHM) authorities to ascertain the essential items needed by Ayush doctors to practice in health facilities.

The ministry has also sought details of facilities where such requirements are present and utilized by Ayush doctors posted under the mainstreaming of Ayush (Ayurveda, Yoga, Unani, Siddha and Homeopathy) practitiners.

Officials claimed that the exercise is meant to restructure the Ayush programme and efforts are being made to equip all Ayush doctors with the same facilities as are given to allopathic doctors working in community/primary health centers across the state.

District programme manager (DPM), NRHM, VK Singh told TOI, “NRHM authorities have provided medicines of all streams- Allopathic, ayurvedic, homeopathic and unani. Currently we have laid stress on knowing the infrastructure needed by Ayush doctors so that they could perform their duties in an organised way.”

The fact is that majority of Ayush doctors posted at community and primary health centers do not have the adequate infrastructure, including basic items like sphygmomanometer and stethoscope.

However, there are plans to provide at least 33 articles necessary for Ayush doctors and for that a workplan for the year 2014-17 has been prepared by the authorities concerned.

The list of articles include a separate room for Ayush contractual pharmacist for dispensing Ayush medicines. Besides, there would be a consultation table for Ayush doctors, doctor’s chair, steel chair (for visitors), revolving stool, curtains with stand for patient examination table, patient examination table, dispensing steel table, sphygmomanometer, stethoscope, thermometer, small electric weighing machine, height weighing stand, intra-uterine examination kit, surgical gloves etc. [Source]