Hospicio Downgrade: Prabhav Naik Questions U-Turn

Margao :
On 27th August 2024, citizens of Margao submitted a detailed memorandum demanding that Hospicio South Goa District Hospital (SGDH) be made fully functional and upgraded with advanced healthcare facilities. On 31st August, Health Minister Vishwajit Rane publicly announced that making SGDH a Tertiary Hospital was his responsibility. He followed this with a site visit in September 2024, raising public expectations. But now, shockingly, nine months later, the same Minister says he will “find ways” to give it semi-tertiary status. What has changed in this short period? Why this betrayal of South Goa? questioned Madganvcho Awaaz & Youth Leader Prabhav Naik.

Hospicio continues to suffer from severe staff shortages. Key departments function with skeletal personnel, and critical posts remain vacant despite repeated assurances from the government. Whether it is nurses, technicians, or specialist doctors, recruitment remains sluggish, affecting patient care directly. For a hospital expected to serve an entire district, this is unacceptable, said Prabhav Naik.

Despite being in 2025, SGDH still lacks a fully operational Cardiac Catheterization Lab (Cath Lab), a basic requirement in any tertiary or even semi-tertiary care institution. Heart patients in South Goa continue to be referred to GMC Bambolim or private hospitals, often losing precious time in emergencies. Similarly, there is no neurosurgery unit, meaning accident victims or trauma patients cannot be treated here and must be transported over long distance GMC, risking lives, claimed Prabhav Naik.

The ambulance situation remains dire, with not even the minimum number of Advanced Life Support (ALS) and Basic Life Support (BLS) ambulances available round the clock. What exists is poorly equipped and inconsistently staffed. Patients are often forced to wait or make private arrangements, completely defeating the purpose of a district hospital, Prabhav Naik said

The people of South Goa are being systematically denied access to quality public healthcare. We demand answers. We demand accountability. And we demand immediate action, not vague promises. SGDH must be made fully functional as a Tertiary Care Hospital, as originally promised. We will not allow South Goa to be treated like a second-class citizen, warned Prabhav Naik.