Not only were Delhi's hospitals gripped with the shortage of basic amenities, critical staff shortage also impeded essential services across some hospitals. 
Special 
Not only were Delhi's hospitals gripped with the shortage of basic amenities, critical staff shortage also impeded essential services across some hospitals. After the Comptroller and Auditor General's (CAG's) report on liquor policy, the CAG audit report on Delhi's healthcare infrastructure and management has opened a can of worms that would put the Arvind Kejriwal-led Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) further in the dock.
The CAG audit on the national capital's healthcare infrastructure and management revealed a severe shortage of critical services such as ambulance services, ICUs, oxygen supply and blood banks in several hospitals.
Out of 27 hospitals in Delhi, 14 lack ICU facilities whereas 16 do not have blood banks. 12 of these hospitals are operating without ambulance services and oxygen supply is not there in 8 hospitals.
It was also revealed that critical hospital infrastructure such as operation theatres, ICU beds, and private rooms were unutilised at the Rajiv Gandhi and Janakpuri Super Speciality Hospitals.
The report also mentioned that 15 hospitals do not have a mortuary. Coming to Mohalla clinics and AYUSH dispensaries in Delhi, many of them lack basic facilities such as toilets, power backup and check-up tables.
A shortage of facilities such as pulse oximetres, X-ray viewers, glucometers, thermometers, and blood pressure monitors was also reported. Laboratory services were also completely unavailable across mohalla clinics from November 16, 2022-December 14, 2022.
Not only were Delhi's hospitals gripped with the shortage of basic amenities, critical staff shortage also impeded essential services across some hospitals.
Some hospitals across the national capital had a 21 per cent shortfall of nurses, 38 per cent shortage of paramedics, and 50-96 per cent shortage of doctors and nurses, the CAG audit report underlined. Trauma centres also lack specialist doctors for emergency care.
The report also mentioned that 18 per cent of the clinics assessed were non-operational from 15 days to around 2 years mainly due to shortage of doctors, resignations, and de-empanelment.
Due to this, the report mentioned that the waiting times for surgeries in Delhi hospitals were humongous. These wait times were 2-3 months for general surgeries and 6-8 months for burn and plastic surgeries at the Lok Nayak Hospital and even 12 months for pediatric surgeries at the CNBC Hospital.
Besides this, the availability of essential medicines was another issue that came to the fore. During the CAG audit, it was found that 74 of the clinics reviewed did not maintain the full stock of 165 essential medicines listed in the Essential Drug List (EDL).
This could be attributed to supply chain inefficiencies, EDL medicines not being procured by the central procurement agency, and orders not being delivered, with delays ranging from 3-6 months.
It was also found out that the funds allocated for COVID-19 response were not fully utilised. Only ₹572.84 crore of the total ₹787.91 crore was utilised, with ₹30.52 crore for healthcare workers remaining unspent and ₹83.14 crore allotted for essential drugs and PPE kits going unused.
The CAG audit also revealed that the AAP government failed to expand the bed capacity in hospitals. As per the audit report, only 1,357 of the promised 32,000 new hospital beds were added. Some hospitals in Delhi reported an occupancy of 101-189 per cent, prompting patients to either share beds or sleep on floors.
Not just hospital beds, the CAG report also flagged delays in completing hospital projects such as Indira Gandhi Hospital, Burari Hospital, and MA Dental Ph-II. It noted that major hospital projects faced delays of 3-6 years, leading to cost overruns worth ₹382.52 crore.
(With inputs from Sreya Chatterjee)
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