The Journey and Progress of the Department of Neurosurgery at the University College of Medical Sciences and Guru Teg Bahadur Hospital.

Abstract

Guru Teg Bahadur Hospital (GTBH) associated with the University College of Medical Sciences (UCMS) is one of the largest hospitals associated with a medical college in the National Capital of Delhi, India. The Department of Neurosurgery was initially established here in 1997, but since its inception, has made rapid strides in terms of infrastructure and quality of patient care. The main objective of this article is to depict the history and path of progress of the Neurosurgery Department, from its inception to its present status, along with the inherent and existing challenges in running the department. A retrospective analysis from the time the department was established to its present status was done. The improvement of infrastructure, increase in patient inflow over the years, the number of procedures related to different subspecialties, and existing challenges along with the scope of further improvement were analyzed. There has been a significant upgradation of infrastructure more so in the last 5 years. Both indoor and outdoor patient attendance has increased over the years along with steady significant growth of the number of elective and emergency procedures. However, despite the progress, significant challenges hampering optimal patient care still remain to be overcome. The department right now is providing satisfactory patient care with absolutely no financial burden to the patients. Neurosurgery academic residency has recently resumed, and a wide range of neurosurgical conditions are being successfully treated. If the existing challenges are addressed in a timely manner, the coming years hold a bright future for the department.