Bengaluru sub-centres get staff boost

A new cadre of community health officers or mid-level healthcare providers (MLHP), trained in a six-month course of community health, will be posted at sub-centres, which are reeling under staff shortage.

Highly popular, the range of services provided by existing subcentres and primary health centres have been expanded to screen non-communicable diseases like hypertension, diabetes, oral cancer, breast cancer, and cervical cancer.

In Karnataka, 1,904 Health and Wellness Centres (HWCs) are operational, out of which 871 are sub-centres, 697 are primary health centres and 336 are urban primary health centres.

As many as 1,464 MLHPs have already been trained, while 594 are undergoing training.

According to the plan, graduates of B.Sc (Nursing) are being selected as MLHPs, with one graduate being deputed to every sub-centre through the National Health Mission.

The Union government is also strengthening existing 13 programme study centres under IGNOU in Karnataka to centres for training of MLHPs.

Integration of bridge programme in the Rajiv Gandhi University of Health Sciences curriculum has already been done and trained nursing graduates will be available for MLHP selection from December 2020 onwards.

“So far, the HWCs in Karnataka have seen a total footfall of more than 59 lakh, with 87,000 have been screened for hypertension, 95,000 for diabetes, more than two lakh for oral cancer, 36,000 for breast cancer, over 12,000 for cervical cancer and more than 40,000 yoga sessions have been conducted,” said, Vikas Sheel, Joint Secretary (Policy), who looks after health and wellness centres in the Union health ministry.

The funding pattern for HWCs under the National Health Mission is 60:40 between the Centre and the state.

Preventive healthcare through wellness activities is an important feature of HWCs and more focus is being given to lifestyle changes for creating behavioural changes.

Regular sessions of Yoga at HWCs have attracted the public. Ten yoga sessions are planned at these centres every month and Rs 250 is paid to yoga instructors per session.