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Time of India
08-07-2025
- Health
- Time of India
Min opens emergency service at IGIMS eye institute
Patna: Health minister Mangal Pandey urged doctors and staff of the Indira Gandhi Institute of Medical Sciences (IGIMS) to uphold the trust reposed by patients of the state. He was inaugurating several new facilities, including 24-hour emergency service at the Regional Eye Institute. Round-the-clock medical professionals will be available in the emergency department. He said the emergency facility includes ultrasound, X-ray, various equipment for eye examinations, and two advanced modular operation theatres. He also announced the establishment of robotic surgery, a 20-bed critical care medicine unit, and 20 dialysis units at the IGIMS by Aug 16. He expressed satisfaction over the board of governors' decision regarding establishment of Post Graduate Institute of Dental Research for dental care and the construction of its building. He said a 100-bed dental hospital, where 50 BDS students will study, would be set up soon. The minister also inaugurated advanced Lumera-i microscope and lab services. He also opened new equipment in two key departments, including that of retina, besides a machine for electrophysiology, which will provide information about nerve diseases of the eye. At glaucoma service, an extra field analyser, specular microscope and an ultrasound machine were inaugurated.
Time of India
30-06-2025
- Health
- Time of India
Long work hours taking toll on doctors' mental health: Experts
Patna: Who saves the saviour — this is a million-dollar question modern-day medical practitioners face. Long working hours, huge patient load and emotional stress witnessing deaths on a day-to-day basis takes a toll on their mental health. Doctors fight their own silent battles: their mental well-being, behind stoic masks worn in hospitals. This year's theme of National Doctors' Day, marked on July 1 — 'Behind the Mask: Who Heals the Healers?' — highlights this often-overlooked struggle. Dr Santosh Kumar, head of the dept of psychiatry in Nalanda Medical College, said a doctor's life is inherently stressful. "There is a higher suicide rates among doctors. Long work hours, especially for junior doctors, largely impact their mental health. Many do not get enough time for essential activities like sleep and exercise. Those posted in emergency department are also vulnerable due to the demanding work culture there," he said, adding that recent studies have found 30.1% of health-care professionals suffer from depression, with 16.7% having suicidal thoughts. Approximately two-thirds experience moderate stress (67.2%) and 13% face high levels of stress. According to Dr Niska Sinha, senior psychiatrist at Indira Gandhi Institute of Medical Sciences, Patna, the mental health of doctors is a concerning issue, with many physicians experiencing burnout, depression and anxiety due to the high-stress nature of their job. "In places like Bihar, the doctor-patient ideal ratio is low, which leads to excess workload. There is also a lot of expectation. Burnouts among doctors have increased after Covid-19, and there is a stigma associated with mental health in the medical profession. Doctors are supposed to be strong. There are also professional barriers in seeking help from a doctor, no privacy because of being in the same profession," she said, adding factors such as long working hours, high patient loads, lack of resources and the emotional toll of dealing with suffering and death contribute to these issues. She suggested that providing safe and confidential access to mental health services can help physicians feel more comfortable seeking help. "Addressing the mental health of doctors requires systemic reforms, cultural shifts and improved support structures. Implementing policies to ease burdens and promote work-life balance can help reduce burnout and improve mental health. By prioritising physicians' well-being, we can ensure high-quality patient care and sustain the healthcare system in the long run. We need to save the saviour," she said.
Time of India
24-06-2025
- Health
- Time of India
Health minister inaugurates new facilities at IGIMS
Patna: Health minister Mangal Pandey on Tuesday inaugurated four new facilities in the Indira Gandhi Institute of Medical Sciences (IGIMS). The facilities have been developed with an expenditure of Rs 8 crore and include paediatric oncology ward, two modular OTs, robotic operated physiotherapy and molecular pharmacology research lab in the pharmacology department. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now The minister said the 12-bed paediatric oncology ward has been built to provide a family-like atmosphere to the children undergoing treatment there. The facilities include playing, studying with a child psychologist and dietician. The minister, along with Digha MLA Sanjeev Chaurasia, also met children who have overcome cancer with great joy and inquired about their well-being. Pandey said the modern modular OTs in the cancer department include high quality ventilation and filtration systems for infection control of the patients of the State Cancer Centre during and after surgery. "The new OTs will prove to be more effective in the fight against cancer," he said. The minister thanked the IOCL for providing funds under CSR for the modern equipment in the physiotherapy department. "It will help in the treatment of spinal pain, spondylitis, problems due to nerve compression etc. An attempt is being made to give a modern form to physiotherapy for many diseases like brain injury, Parkinson and stroke. The equipment have been developed with indigenous technology by experts from institutions like AIIMS, New Delhi and IIT," he said. The minister thanked the IGIMS director, Dr Binde Kumar, deputy director (administration) Dr Vibhuti Prasanna Sinha, all senior doctors, Dr Nilesh Mohan, Dr Jayant Prakash, Dr Rakesh Kumar Singh, Dr P K Dubey, Dr P K Jha, Dr Santosh Kumar, Dr Raj Kumar, Dr Nitesh Kumar, Dr Pradeep Jaiswal and Dr Pritpal Singh for their continuous service to the patients.
Indian Express
16-05-2025
- Politics
- Indian Express
Convicted for life, after a feud to death: The story of Munna Shukla, a rival, and Bihar politics
A STORY from the Bihar badlands, of legendary friends turned arch rivals, a feud lasting four decades and several murders, may have entered yet another chapter. On Thursday, the Supreme Court confirmed the life sentence for former MLA Vijay Kumar Shukla alias Munna Shukla in the 1998 murder of ex-Bihar minister Brijbihari Prasad. The Court gave Shukla – who had appealed in Court against its order of October 2024, sentencing him to life – 15 days to surrender. Whether this is the end of the road for Shukla – who has survived other convictions, including of murder, while making strides in politics – is another matter, however. The killing of Brijbihari Prasad in June 1998, for which Shukla stands convicted, had been sensational, with the then ruling RJD leader gunned down at Patna's Indira Gandhi Institute of Medical Sciences. In 1999, the case was transferred to the CBI. Ten years later, a Patna trial court sentenced Shukla and five others to life terms. In October last year, the Supreme Court convicted Munna and Mantu Tiwari, another Bihar politician, and gave them life, while giving the other accused the benefit of doubt. In its Thursday order, the Court said it did not find 'any good ground and reason to review' the October judgment. Shukla was also convicted in another high-profile case, the 1994 lynching of then Gopalganj DM G Krishnaiah. In 2008, the Patna High Court acquitted him and five others, while commuted the death sentence given to former MP Anand Mohan in the case to life. Anand Mohan was given remission in 2023 and released from jail. Krishnaiah's wife challenged the remission in the Supreme Court, where the matter is pending. It was from Lalganj, Vaishali, in the 1970s that the story of the Shukla brothers – Chhotan, Bhutkun and Munna – began. The Bhumihar strongmen started off as petty contractors, which is how they came in contact with Prasad, a contractor from Motihari belonging to the OBC community. A Muzaffarpur-based journalist recalls: 'There was so much camaraderie between Brijbihari Prasad and the Shuklas at one stage that Prasad's wife Rama Devi would tie a rakhi to the eldest of the Shukla brothers, Chhotan, on Rakshabandhan.' Soon, the Shuklas' renown spread, as they ran up a list of allegations, particularly of extortion, and later, moved into politics. The brothers' expanding interests and muscle power brought them into conflict with Prasad, who too had graduated to politics after his business took off on the strength of government contracts. By 1982, the Shuklas and Prasad were officially at war. A retired police officer, who once served in Muzaffarpur, said: 'They targeted each other's supporters, resulting in several killings between 1983 and 1985. While the two groups were suspected to have a hand, no FIRs were filed against either side.' According to the former police officer, there was still peace as long as both Chhotan and Prasad enjoyed the patronage of influential Congress leader Raghunath Pandey, who was the Muzaffarpur MLA from 1985 to 2000. 'But then Prasad tried to defy Pandey, and Chhotan emerged as the latter's favourite.' With Pandey's backing, Chhotan went about securing the support of most of the prominent upper caste leaders, particularly Hemant Shahi, the son of former minister and Bhumihar Congress leader L P Shahi. By 1990, Chhotan moved his attention full-time to politics, leaving the control of contracts to Bhutkun. The thorn in the Shuklas' side, however, remained Prasad – who, having fallen out of favour with Pandey, found a benefactor in the RJD. Getting a jump over the Shuklas, he became an MLA and a minister in 1990 in the Lalu Prasad government. He also grew close to Begusarai muscleman Ashok Sharma a.k.a Ashok Samrat, a Bhumihar. This triggered a fresh round of turf war as, bolstered by power, Prasad tried to curb the Shukla brothers' influence. The escalating cycle of violence culminated in Chhotan's killing in 1994. Police made hardly any headway in the murder, finally filing a closure report in 2020. Chhotan's death meant Bhutkun took over the Shukla family reins. In 1994, he was named along with younger brother Munna in the lynching of G Krishnaiah. Police officers say that Chhotan evaded them by remaining confined largely to his village Khanjahachak, which was surrounded by rivers from three sides while, on the fourth, there was an escape route to Uttar Pradesh via Saran. In March 1997, Prasad's close aide Onkar Singh was killed, with the hand of the Shuklas suspected in it. Months later, in October 1997, Bhutkun was killed by his own bodyguard. Officers say the bodyguard had been planted by his rivals back in 1995, and gained Bhutkun's confidence over the next two years. The bodyguard was never caught, and Bhutkun's killing too remained unsolved. Eight months later, on June 13, 1998, Munna allegedly struck back, getting Prasad at the Patna hospital where he was admitted due to several ailments. Apart from Munna, police booked UP's Sriprakash Shukla, another known mafia don, and politicians Rajan Tiwari and Suraj Bhan, along with six others in Prasad's killing. Sriprakash was killed in September 1998. In 2009, a Patna court sentenced all the others accused to life. In July 2014, the Patna High Court acquitted them. The coming together of the upper-caste Rajputs and Bhumihars, who would make up about 8% of the state's population, could be a threat to the RJD politics. Lalu had a taste of it when the Bihar People's Party, formed by Anand Mohan, fielded Chhotan's widow Kiran Shukla from the Kesaria Assembly seat in the 1995 polls. She lost though to CPI OBC candidate, Yamuna Yadav. In 2005, the Shuklas made a fresh foray into politics, when Munna contested on the ticket of RJD rival JD(U) from the Lalganj Assembly seat and won. After his conviction in 2009, Munna's wife Annu contested from the seat as an Independent in 2010 – and retained it. As is the way of politics, things have come full circle, with Munna now with the RJD – the party he was pitted against all these years. Last year, before the Supreme Court conviction came, he contested the Lok Sabha polls from Vaishali as RJD nominee against the LJP (Ramvilas)'s Veena Devi, but lost. In the Assembly elections due this year, Munna was hopeful of getting a ticket again, for either himself or wife Annu, from Lalganj. The seat incidentally is represented by the RJD's Sanjay Kumar Singh currently. On the other side, Prasad's wife Rama Devi is also well-entrenched in politics, having won as the Sheohar MP thrice, in 2009, 2014 and 2019, from the BJP. In last year's Lok Sabha elections, Rama was denied a ticket from Sheohar, with the nomination going to BJP ally JD(U)'s Lovely Anand, who won. Lovely Anand, incidentally, is the wife of Anand Mohan. RJD spokesperson Mrityunjay Tiwari indicated the turf war may continue – at least in politics. 'What can one say about the Supreme Court's verdict? Munna Shukla will explore more legal options,' Tiwari said.
News18
06-05-2025
- Health
- News18
No Need For Risky Open-Brain Surgeries Now As Bihar Hospital Introduces Non-Invasive Procedure
Last Updated: IGIMS Patna introduces advanced tech to treat brain vessel damage without invasive surgery at low cost, and completely free under Ayushman Bharat scheme In a major medical breakthrough, patients suffering from nerve-related brain conditions no longer need to undergo invasive brain surgery. For the first time in Bihar, such advanced procedures are now available at a government hospital, at a fraction of the cost compared to private institutions. Additionally, Ayushman Bharat cardholders can access the treatment completely free of charge. The Indira Gandhi Institute of Medical Sciences (IGIMS) in Patna has launched a revolutionary new facility in its Department of Neurosurgery. Patients suffering from ruptured or damaged blood vessels in the brain can now be treated without having to open the skull. Dr Manish Mandal, Medical Superintendent at IGIMS, explained that in the past, treating internal brain bleeds or burst blood vessels required opening the brain; an operation that often left patients paralysed, unconscious, or on ventilator support. Recovery times were long, and outcomes uncertain. Now, however, with the help of modern medical technology, a fine wire can be inserted through the neck or another accessible point in the body and navigated to the brain's blood vessels. The entire procedure is guided by imaging on a screen, allowing the surgeon to seal the damaged vessel with remarkable precision. This method significantly reduces risk and speeds up patient recovery. A major contributor to this advancement is the introduction of a Digital Subtraction Angiography (DSA) machine. Unlike the older equipment, which could only display half of the brain at a time, the new DSA machine provides full-brain imaging, greatly improving surgical accuracy and safety. The cost of this minimally invasive procedure at IGIMS is between Rs 1 lakh and Rs 1.5 lakh, roughly one-fourth of what private hospitals charge. Notably, no other government hospital in Bihar currently offers this level of brain angiography. For Ayushman cardholders, the surgery is available completely free of cost. First Published: May 06, 2025, 12:44 IST
