Mohali: Punjab health and family welfare and medical education and research minister Dr Balbir Singh Friday inaugurated the rural health training centre (RHTC) at Saneta village, established under the department of community medicine of Dr BR Ambedkar State Institute of Medical Sciences (AIMS), Mohali.The minister also laid the foundation for a hostel for medical interns and a boundary wall for the facility.Addressing a gathering, Dr Balbir Singh said the Punjab govt was strengthening healthcare infrastructure in rural areas and that the centre would provide quality healthcare services to villagers while serving as a community-based training facility for medical students.He urged residents to avail themselves of the healthcare services being offered and stressed the importance of preventive healthcare, particularly regular health screenings for people aged above 40 years for early detection of diseases.The minister said OPD services, laboratory testing, digital X-ray facilities, immunisation and anti-rabies vaccination services had already started at the centre. Indoor facilities, including a 10-bed ward and a labour room, would become operational soon, he added.He said the proposed hostel would provide residential accommodation for medical interns and medical officers, helping ensure round-the-clock inpatient, emergency and maternal healthcare services.A mega multi-specialty health camp was also organised on the occasion, offering consultations in medicine, surgery, orthopaedics, obstetrics and gynaecology, paediatrics and ophthalmology. Free medicines and laboratory investigations were provided to villagers.Mohali MLA Kulwant Singh, who was present at the event, thanked the state govt for strengthening rural healthcare infrastructure and announced that an Aam Aadmi Clinic would soon be opened in the village.
