TN govt to extend contract of docs recruited for mini clinics

 TN govt to extend contract of docs recruited for mini clinics

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04.01.2022

Besides, 4,448 health sub-centres have been converted to health and wellness centres under the universal health coverage programme. “The government, after careful consideration of the report by the Directorate of Public Health, has decided to not extend the scheme beyond 31. 12. 2021,” the GO said.

However, with the threat of Omicron, the government has decided to extend the contract of the doctors recruited for the mini clinics until March 31. Corporation heads have been told to redeploy the contract staff working in the mini clinics to fever camps and Covid-19 care centres, the health secretary said.

With the closure of the mini clinics, the government is expected to save ₹26. 71 crore a month.

Former chief minister Edappadi K Palaniswami had in December urged the DMK government to run the clinics as the scheme sought to provide healthcare for the poor.

Health department officials told TOI that the scheme lost relevance in the state with UPHCs and door-to- door healthcare initiatives gaining ground. “It will be an unnecessary burden on the exchequer. We will take a call on retaining the staff after March,” an official said.

The corporation is planning to convert all the 196 mini clinic buildings into urban health and wellness centres. The centres will be set up at a cost of ₹88 crore, under the Centre’s Ayushman Bharat comprehensive primary healthcare scheme. They would provide diagnosis and treatment for noncommunicable diseases, childbirth and neonatal issues.

TN govt shuts Amma mini clinics citing performance

Chennai:

The Tamil Nadu government has decided to discontinue the Amma mini clinics launched by the AIADMK government in December 2020, citing lack of performance.

The 1,950 mini clinics were launched for fever diagnosis, but since the second Covid wave ebbed in 2021, the clinics were used only as vaccination centres, officials said. According to a government order (GO 592) dated December 31, 2021, shared with TOI, health secretary Dr J Radhakrishnan has said that the mini clinics have not reached a substantial level of performance, and with schemes like ‘Makkalai thedi maruthuvam’ and ‘Varumun kappom thittam’ now, the objective of providing easy healthcare access to people has been achieved.