Punjab’s rehab centres need booster shot to check drug menace

With the recent crackdown on drugs after a spate of deaths due to suspected overdose, the Punjab government is counting on its three dozen-odd drug de-addiction centres to help addicts kick the habit.
Chandigarh : Chief minister Capt Amarinder Singh instructed health authorities to ensure smooth functioning of the state-run de-addiction centres and provide free treatment to the needy. Hindustan Times visited the centres to find them battling staff shortage and poor infrastructure amid a rush of patients
First rehab centre in Amritsar fails lab test
Inaugurated by Union minister Arun Jaitley in July 2015, Punjab’s first full-fledged government-run drug de-addiction and rehabilitation centre here, built at a cost of Rs 5 crore, claims to provide everything required for treating addicts but patients are dissatisfied.
The number of patients is now 84, up from 35 three weeks ago. Their main grouse is that the only test conducted in its laboratory is to check addiction.
“My grandson is here since July 6. He is getting medicines but the doctor asked him to undergo tests for HIV and hepatitis outside,” says Gurnam Kaur of Ghumanpura village. Another patient says, “When we paid the fee of Rs 1,540 for treatment, samples were collected in the ward. Doctors now ask us to call our parents for tests to be conducted outside.”
Centre psychiatrist Amarbir Singh says, “We have arrangements for urine test for addiction. The addicts undergo other tests at the local government medical college.”
The centre is linked with the de-addiction centre at the medical college. Of the five wards, two are air-conditioned.
The centre has a permanent medical officer, eight psychiatrists on rotation, seven nursing staff and four ward attendants besides administrative staff and trainers. The college provides staff to the centre but they work for 16 hours at times, says nursing officer Vishal Johan. “We have enough doctors. We have sought eight more staffers, including two lab technicians,” says Dr PD Garg, who heads both centres.
The centre is getting support from Sun Foundation, an NGO led by Vikramjit Singh Sahney, for two years. The NGO offers three-month certificate courses in computers, welding, plumbing and electrical jobs. “More than 300 patients are enrolled in these courses,” says Baljit Kaur Johal, the coordinator of the foundation.
On the administration’s request, the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee supplies free food from the langar (community kitchen) of Golden Temple to this centre. Food also comes from another Sikh religious organisation headed by Baba Kashmir Singh Bhuri Wale.
Tarn Taran centre fights staff crunch
It’s always a long wait at the Government Drug De-Addiction and Rehabilitation Centre in Tarn Taran Civil Hospital.
Centre manager Rajive Kumar says there are only 20 beds, which are occupied all the time. “Besides staff, we need more beds. Three patients are on the wait list daily,” he says. The centre has a psychiatrist, a counsellor and three nurses for the 20 patients. The centre charges ₹3,000 per patient for 15 days and Kumar says it had yet to receive any official intimation of free treatment to the needy.
The Outpatient Opioid Assisted Treatment (OOAT) centre has a medical officer, a counsellor and a nurse. Medical officer Dr Parminder Singh Sidhu says the two main OOAT centres in the district are at Tharu village and at
Patti’s Bhagupur village. Patients are registered at these two centres though there are eight more OOAT clinics in the district.
“Nearly 100 patients visit the centre daily. It takes 15 minutes to register one patient. We manage to register 24 to 30 patients daily. It’s a must for newly registered patients to take medicines from the two main OOAT centres for three days. So, we’re handling 200 to 300 patients daily,” he says.
Dr Sidhu says the OOAT centres need another medical officer, a counsellor, a data entry operator and two staff nurses.