Kerala’s Health Department Report Card Unveils Hospital Expansion, AIIMS Push & CSR-Led Infrastructure Plan
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A statewide assessment of available space will also be conducted to identify opportunities for further bed expansion.
The Kerala government has unveiled its health department report card for the first 50 days of the new administration, highlighting hospital infrastructure expansion, workforce strengthening and medical education reforms.
Health Minister K. Muraleedharan has also announced plans to supplement government spending with corporate social responsibility (CSR) funding to improve facilities across public hospitals.
Released at the Government Medical College in Thiruvananthapuram, the report titled Fifty Remarkable Days of the Health Department outlines a series of measures to improve access to healthcare.
The minister said the department was working on the principle that treatment, medicines and hospital beds are the basic rights of every patient.
"The state govt will mobilise CSR funds, in addition to budgetary allocations, to improve infrastructure in govt hospitals," Muraleedharan said while launching the report.
To address overcrowding in public hospitals, the government has reopened previously unused wards at Pulayanarkotta Hospital, adding 200 beds.
Similar efforts are underway across government medical colleges by bringing vacant wards back into service, while new buildings are planned on already acquired land at the Kozhikode and Kottayam Government Medical Colleges.
A statewide assessment of available space will also be conducted to identify opportunities for further bed expansion.
The health department report card also details plans to deploy specialist doctors only at hospitals equipped with the required facilities, facilitate house surgeon training for Indian medical graduates who studied abroad, and simplify the registration process for nursing graduates from institutions outside Kerala.
In addition, the government has created 186 new posts under the Aardram Mission and appointed 415 doctors to strengthen healthcare delivery, while directing that all remaining vacancies be reported and filled through the Public Service Commission.
On the long-pending proposal to establish an All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in Kerala, Muraleedharan said the state would submit multiple site options to the Union government to avoid delays linked to location disputes.
The department has also proposed establishing an Institute of Genetics and Rehabilitation to strengthen medical education and research.
The report further highlights healthcare infrastructure projects across the state, including expansion of Wayanad Medical College using KSEB land in Mananthavady, plans for a super-speciality hospital at Madakkimala in Kalpetta, upgrades at Parippally Government Medical College, a virtual autopsy facility at Kozhikode Medical College, improved services at Thamarassery Taluk Hospital, a mobile tribal health unit at Perambra, and Wayanad's first MRI facility alongside new radiology and laboratory services.
The minister also said efforts to prevent infectious diseases, including Nipah, are continuing, while a yellow fever vaccination centre in Thiruvananthapuram is nearing completion.
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