Gaya: Govt hospitals, including primary health centres (PHCs), across Gaya district have been directed to avoid unnecessary referrals and follow the prescribed referral protocol, civil surgeon Dr Raja Ram Prasad said on Wednesday.The protocol requires hospitals to provide basic treatment and stabilise patients before referral, upload justification on BHAVYA portal, and transfer patients only in ambulances equipped with basic or advanced life support systems. Doctors have also been instructed to provide computerised treatment summaries and specific reasons for referrals.At the district-level JPN Hospital, popularly known as Pilgrim Hospital, referrals to tertiary facilities fell from 24 between July 15 and 31 to 10 between Aug 1 and 15, Prasad said. He added that efforts were on to reduce referrals further. District-wide data on PHC referrals is being compiled.Facilities at JPN Hospital are also being expanded. The hospital is now performing 20 types of surgeries, up from 12 earlier, with Caesarean sections among the new procedures. Equipment has been requisitioned for bone-related surgeries, which will begin after the required infrastructure is made available.At Prabhawati Hospital, popularly known as Lady Elgin Hospital, 10 patients were referred during the last two weeks of July, while six in the first two weeks of Aug.Hospital superintendent Dr Sushma Verma attributed the referrals to manpower shortages. Hospital sources said the ICU was not functioning effectively due to the absence of an anaesthetist. Shortages of doctors and paramedical staff have also affected the hospital’s ability to manage patients.
