Peroorkada district model hospital in Thiruvananthapuram has begun offering advanced orthopaedic procedures, including knee and hip replacements, complex fracture surgeries and arthroscopy, giving public-sector patients access to treatment previously concentrated at larger government hospitals.
Around 10 such surgeries have been performed at the hospital over the past two months, according to the Times of India report. The new services are intended to reduce the need for patients to depend on the government medical college hospital or expensive private facilities for complex orthopaedic care.
Health minister K Muraleedharan said strengthening hospitals at the grassroots level by equipping them with facilities comparable to those available at medical colleges was a key government policy. The services introduced at Peroorkada hospital form part of that initiative, he said.
Before the expansion, complex orthopaedic surgeries within the government healthcare system in Thiruvananthapuram district were available at the medical college hospital and the general hospital, according to the report. The availability of the procedures at Peroorkada is expected to provide another treatment location and help reduce pressure on the medical college hospital.
The move also reflects an effort to use the services of specialty and super-specialty doctors across a wider network of government hospitals. For patients, the addition of advanced procedures closer to their communities could reduce dependence on a single tertiary facility, particularly for those who may otherwise face longer waiting periods or higher private-sector costs.
Orthopaedic surgeon Dr Vivek Mathew, who leads the surgical team at Peroorkada hospital, said providing these procedures through the government sector at affordable rates would offer significant relief to ordinary people. Similar surgeries at private hospitals can impose a substantial financial burden on patients, he said.
The hospital is also preparing to expand its orthopaedic programme to include complex spinal surgeries. Preliminary efforts have begun, but the procedures will be introduced only after the required supporting infrastructure and facilities are put in place, Dr Mathew said.
At present, the medical college hospital is the only government facility in Thiruvananthapuram offering spinal surgeries, according to the report. The proposed expansion at Peroorkada would therefore extend the district’s public-sector capacity for specialised orthopaedic treatment, subject to the hospital completing the infrastructure and facility requirements.
