GMCH's 259-bed Trauma Centre likely to open doors to patients in August
Chandigarh will get another dedicated trauma centre, this time at the Government Medical College and Hospital (GMCH), Sector 32. The long-awaited 259-bed trauma centre is now almost ready, and hospital authorities plan to inaugurate it in August.
Dr G P Thami, Medical Superintendent, GMCH, said that construction work is complete and equipment procurement is currently underway. 'We had to postpone our 11th convocation earlier due to tensions between India and Pakistan. The new date for the convocation has been set for August 2. We hope to inaugurate the trauma centre on the same day and have sent the proposal to the UT Administration,' he said.
The project was initially proposed in 2019 with a timeline of 18 months. It was expected to be operational by February 2022. However, the COVID-19 pandemic caused delays. The UT Administration had repeatedly emphasised the need for its early completion. Now, with work almost complete, the trauma centre is expected to ease space constraints in the current emergency wing. Officials say that the existing area could be used for other departments once trauma services are shifted to the new building.
With this development, Chandigarh will have two dedicated trauma centres — one at PGI and another at GMCH. Currently, GMCH has around 150 beds for both emergency and trauma cases. The addition of the new trauma centre is expected to significantly reduce the burden.
GMCH's trauma wing is a critical project. The need for expansion has been urgent, as the existing emergency wing has no room for additional beds. Former director Dr B S Chavan had secured ?52 crore for this project, with the goal of upgrading the emergency capacity to 259 beds. Until now, trauma and emergency patients have been managed in a common space, often resulting in overcrowding, with some patients treated on trolleys.
Once the new trauma facility becomes operational, the hospital will have improved capacity and infrastructure to manage high-volume critical cases more efficiently.
If all goes as per plan, the hospital administration is also considering expanding the gynaecology department alongside the trauma centre launch. With the trauma wing shifting out of the main building, significant space will be vacant, which could be used to add more gynaecology beds. The department has long faced space shortages, despite handling a large volume of delivery cases from Chandigarh and neighbouring states like Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, and Uttar Pradesh.
Hospital authorities say the expansion of gynaecology and other departments will help meet the rising demand for healthcare services in the region.
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