Under the Meghalaya Health Advancement Policy (MHAP) the State government today handed over the first instalment of Rs 1 crore financial aid to Nazareth Hospital, Shillong.
The government had recently announced Rs 2 crore to non-profit hospitals across the state under the policy in a bid to improve healthcare services to the people especially the underprivileged and marginalized.
Speaking on the occasion, Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma said that the government is committed and focused on the health sector in spite of the numerous inherent challenges.
“Meghalaya has the highest budgetary allocation in the health sector compared to any other state in the country, a large amount of the budget which is used for improving the infrastructure,” he said.
“Our goals are ultimately the same, that is to provide quality, efficient and affordable healthcare to the people and this is where we can partner with different hospitals,” he said informing the gathering about the genesis and the conceptualisation of the MHAP.
Expressing his gratitude to people serving in the health sector he called upon them to continue to serve with passion, dedication and compassion. He also stressed on the need for hospitals to communicate with each other not only for improving overall patient outcomes but also to enable collaboration among healthcare professionals.
Administrator of Nazareth Hospital Sr Noreen expressed gratitude to the state government for the financial grant and highlighted the areas where the financial assistance would be used especially in procuring lifesaving equipment and ventilators for the Emergency Trauma Unit, Maternity Care and the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit. She said the grant will also be used for the College of Nursing that is coming up with capacity intake for 100 students per year.
Commissioner & Secretary Dr Joram Beda, National Health Mission, Mission Director, Ramakrishna Chitturi, Auxiliary Bishop of Shillong, Fr Bernard Laloo and Vicar General, Fr Richard M Majaw were also present on the occasion.
