KGH Critical Care Block Awaits Commissioning

The Critical Care Block at King George Hospital (KGH), built at a cost of ₹23.75 crore under the Ayushman Bharat programme, has yet to be commissioned despite repeated attempts by the authorities to inaugurate it.

Hospital officials had initially planned to make the block operational in April this year. The inauguration was later rescheduled for July 9 as a virtual event to be attended by Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu and the Union Health Minister. However, the event was postponed, and a new date has yet to be announced.

The five-storey building, located opposite the hospital mortuary, was constructed under the Centre’s initiative to strengthen critical care infrastructure in government medical colleges across the country. Of the total project cost, ₹7.5 crore has been set aside for procuring advanced medical equipment.

According to officials, around 400 types of medical equipment are to be installed at the facility, but only about 150 items have been supplied so far. The rest is being procured at the State level, and delays in this supply have held up the block’s commissioning.

The facility has a capacity of 50 beds, allocated across departments that handle critical and emergency cases, including Emergency Medicine, General Medicine, General Surgery, Nephrology, Neurology, Neurosurgery, Paediatrics, and Obstetrics and Gynaecology.

Officials estimate that around 60 nursing personnel will be required to operate the facility. Once commissioned, the block is expected to offer integrated emergency and critical care services under one roof, with specialist doctors and nursing staff available round the clock.