Vijayawada: The Andhra Pradesh government would add 1,000 new beds to two state-of-the-art Mother and Child Health (MCH) blocks.
The health department cited this as a major step to strengthen maternal and child healthcare services and reduce mortality rates among mothers and newborns. The facilities are meant for the government general hospitals (GGHs) in Guntur and Kakinada, with 500 beds each. This would be a significant push to the expanding network of maternal and neonatal care in government hospitals.
The Guntur MCH block, built at a cost of Rs 86 crore with the financial support from Guntur Medical College Alumni of North America (GMCANA), is nearing completion. Similarly, the Kakinada MCH block is being set up at Rangaraya Medical College with the support of its alumni body (RMCANA) at a cost of Rs 46 crore. Each block will house 500 beds dedicated to maternity and child care services.
To make these blocks fully functional, Health Minister Satya Kumar Yadav has approved the procurement of advanced medical equipment worth Rs 51.33 crore. A total of 5,687 units covering 332 types of equipment would be purchased under this programme.
Yadav explained that for Guntur GGH, 1,187 pieces of medical equipment spanning 37 categories would be procured for Rs 23.51 crore. For Kakinada GGH, 4,500 units across 295 categories would be set up for Rs 27.82 crore.
The new facilities would be equipped with ICU beds, patient monitors, ventilators, defibrillators, ECG machines, mobile X-ray and ultrasound units, nebulisers, delivery instruments, oxygen metres, phototherapy units and surgical chairs.
The minister lauded the contributions of GMCANA and RMCANA in taking the lead for these expansions.
