The government’s medical corps points to a shortage of manpower and asks to fill vacancies

Highlighting the problem of severe manpower shortage in various posts in the Department of Health, the Service Doctors and Postgraduates Association (SDPGA) has urged the State government to fill the vacancies as soon as possible. Of the 20,000 sanctioned doctor posts, nearly 4,000 were vacant.

In letters to the health secretary, the association said that as per the Indian Public Health Standards (IPHS), there is a need for 30,000 doctors for the existing patient load and bed strength in hospitals governmental But till now, there were only 20,000 sanctioned posts out of which about 4,000 were vacant. There is a severe labor shortage among nurses, paramedics and hospital workers.

SDPGA asked the Health Secretary to increase the number of posts of doctors and health workers as per the norms of National Medical Commission and IPHS, before implementing the Face Recognition Based Assistance System for Government Doctors .

Association president P. Saminathan and general secretary A. Ramalingam urged the Health Department to look into a long-pending demand of government doctors for pay and promotions by revising the Government Order 354. Noting that the government has constituted a committee with directors. , they asked the Secretary of Health to hold a meeting with managers and associations to resolve the issue.

While welcoming the move to reduce the State’s maternal mortality ratio below 10, the association said they have demanded that all deliveries take place in comprehensive neonatal and obstetric emergency care centers with seven obstetrics-gynecology, anesthesia and paediatrics doctors.

They also demanded the abolition of 24 hours for doctors. The association wanted the government to allocate the premium amount paid by insurance agencies for the Chief Minister’s Comprehensive Health Insurance Scheme directly to the Health department for quality care. During the period, the government is pressuring doctors to generate income through approved claims for procedures and treatments for patients, and the fund was used for various expenses, including works by the Department of Public Works.