| News Details |
| Absence of Dieticians Leading to One-Diet-Fits-All Nutrition in Government Hospitals : Balvinder. | |
Jammu, January 11 (Scoop News)-Renowned RTI activist and social worker Balvinder Singh took a strong dig at the prevailing healthcare practices and said that quality healthcare is not confined to doctors, medicines and machines alone, but is equally dependent on the nutrition provided to patients during treatment and recovery. He lamented that in government hospitals across the Jammu & Kashmir Union Territory, a critical and shamefully neglected aspect of patient care has been reduced to an afterthought — the complete absence of qualified dieticians to plan disease-specific diets for patients suffering from different ailments.
It is a well-established medical fact that patients with conditions such as hypertension, diabetes, renal disorders, cardiac ailments and gastrointestinal diseases require carefully tailored diets. Diabetic and hypertensive patients are advised to limit or avoid excessive intake of carbohydrates like rice, while patients with renal disorders must strictly avoid foods rich in potassium and phosphorus. Ignoring these dietary requirements can aggravate illnesses, delay recovery and, in some cases, lead to serious complications.
Despite this, most government hospitals in JKUT continue to serve a common or routine diet to all patients, without proper nutritional assessment. In the absence of professional dieticians, dietary plans are neither customised nor coordinated with treating doctors. This “one-diet-fits-all” approach defeats the very purpose of hospital care and compromises patient safety.
Dieticians are an essential part of modern healthcare systems. Their role goes beyond food distribution; they contribute significantly to better treatment outcomes, shorter hospital stays, prevention of complications and reduction of workload on doctors and nursing staff. Shockingly, most health institutions in JKUT either do not have sanctioned posts for dieticians or have failed to fill existing vacancies, exposing a serious policy and administrative gap.
This concern is not directed against hospital staff, who are already overburdened and working under difficult conditions, but is a call for administrative accountability. Immediate intervention by the Health Department and the UT administration is required to ensure the mandatory appointment of qualified dieticians in all district hospitals, medical colleges and major healthcare institutions.
Healthcare without proper nutritional planning remains incomplete. Diet should be recognised not as an optional service, but as a critical component of treatment. Timely corrective measures will not only safeguard patient health but also strengthen public confidence in the government healthcare system.
Elaborating on the issue, Singh stated that patient recovery does not depend merely on providing a simple or minimal diet, but on supplying nutritious and balanced food such as milk, eggs and other protein-rich items essential for healing, immunity and strength. He said that two to three decades ago, government hospitals routinely served milk and eggs to admitted patients as part of standard medical care. Ironically, at a time when India has emerged as the world’s fourth-largest economy, the inability of public hospitals to provide even basic nutritious food to patients reflects a disturbing decline in healthcare priorities. Singh termed this situation as “unfortunate and a matter of serious concern.
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