Latest news with #Vivekanandan
The Hindu
30-06-2025
- Health
- The Hindu
‘Fulfil demands of government doctors'
With Doctors' Day being observed on July 1, the Legal Coordination Committee (LCC) for Government Doctors has urged the Chief Minister to fulfil the demands of government doctors including grant of pay band-4 in 12 years as per Government Order 354. In a statement issued, the association said that Tamil Nadu is a model State in terms of medical infrastructure and departmental activities. However, government doctors who contribute to it are paid low. During a protest by government doctors in 2019, the Chief Minister, who was the Leader of the Opposition then, expressed support and assured that the salary demands of government doctors would be fulfilled in the next DMK government. But the government has not fulfilled the demand. Noting that many government hospitals have been opened in the last four years since the DMK government came to power, LCC demanded that the existing government hospitals should be upgraded, and the number of doctors and nurses should be doubled. LCC also demanded a government job for Divya, wife of Vivekanandan, a government doctor who died of COVID-19.
The Hindu
19-06-2025
- Politics
- The Hindu
Doctors march to Chennai from Salem, six detained
Doctors affiliated to the Legal Coordination Committee (LCC) for Government Doctors, who took out a march from Salem to Chennai to draw the Chief Minister's attention to their long-pending demands, reached Chennai on Thursday. While they planned to march till Kalaignar memorial, the police prevented six of them from proceeding further from Saidapet, and detained them in a hall here. The march began at Mettur in Salem on June 11, and was to conclude at the Kalaignar memorial in Chennai on Thursday. Areas covered include Attur, Kallakurichi, Villupuram, and Chengalpattu. Some of LCC's demands are four salary increments for government doctors in 12 years of service as per G.O. 354, more number of doctors, nurses, and medical staff depending on the number of patients in government hospitals, and a government job for the wife of Vivekanandan, a doctor who died in service during the pandemic. LCC president S. Perumal Pillai, in a statement said, the police did not grant them permission to proceed after Saidapet, and forced six doctors into a police vehicle and took them to a hall. He condemned the government's action.
The Hindu
14-06-2025
- Health
- The Hindu
Many private hospitals in T.N. hit by acute shortage of Hepatitis B vaccine
: Private hospitals across the State have been facing a shortage of Hepatitis B vaccine over the past few months. The fall in supplies has made it difficult for many hospitals to vaccinate adults at risk, especially those on dialysis. Hepatitis B vaccine is recommended for infants under the Universal Immunisation Programme (UIP), and for adults at risk such as healthcare providers and people with compromised immune systems. Inquiries with doctors in a number of districts, including Madurai, Tiruchi, Chennai, Erode, and Theni, revealed that there is a shortage of vaccines in many private centres. A doctor in Madurai said, 'We had reached a point where we were left with very few doses of the vaccine. We could not vaccinate newborn children, but got support from government facilities. We received a supply recently, but the quantity does not meet our demand. There has been an acute shortage of the vaccine for the last seven to eight months, and we are unsure of the reason. We have been continuously raising the issue with the manufacturer almost every week.' Multi-dose vials, which have 10 doses each, are used for healthcare workers since it is cost-effective, whereas, single dose vials are used for patients, she said. 'This is mainly recommended for patients visiting nephrology and oncology departments. Due to acute shortage for a few months, we could not vaccinate them,' she added. Doctors in Erode pointed out the difficulty in vaccinating healthcare workers and patients on dialysis due to limited stock, as well as the increase in the cost of vaccines. A year ago, the Chennai Liver Foundation wrote to the vaccine manufacturing company on the poor supply of vaccines. A little later, vaccines were supplied, prioritising the pentavalent ones meant for UIP, while those for adult usage trickled in now and then, according to Vivekanandan Shanmugam, its managing trustee. 'We wrote to the Government of India and they, in response, acknowledged the short supply. They said vaccines would be supplied prioritising the pentavalent doses, and those for the high-risk population. We are not sure when this issue will be sorted out,' he said. Survey to check availability There is a real shortage, and that is why the foundation has sent a survey form to all practitioners and gastroenterologists across India to assess the availability of the vaccine in their centres, Dr. Vivekanandan says, adding: 'This is a gross problem as vaccination is crucial to prevent liver cancers. The World Health Organisation recommends Hepatitis B testing and vaccination for all adults. But given the situation, we should try to test and vaccinate at least those at high risk such as healthcare workers, child-bearing women considering the risk of transmission from mother to child, immune-compromised persons, and those with co-infections such as HIV.' A government doctor said there was increased dependency on the government sector as private hospitals in tier-2 cities and semi-urban areas were facing the shortage of vaccines. Another government doctor added that while the vaccine was freely available for the UIP, they were using the buffer stock for vaccinating patients such as those on dialysis. T.S. Selvavinayagam, Director of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, said the government sector faced no challenges with procuring the vaccine. 'We have 6.34 lakh doses. This is mainly for healthcare workers. Considering our monthly requirement of around 81,000 doses, this stock will last seven to eight months. We also have 2.62 lakh doses of pentavalent vaccine, which is part of the UIP. The pentavalent contains Hepatitis B, and we have supplies that will last over 1.5 months,' he said. He added that if there was any issue with the availability of vaccines in the private sector, people could reach out to Primary Health Centres, where vaccination would be provided as per the UIP schedule for free.
