Govt medical officers threaten to resign en masse

Medical services especially in rural areas is likely to be affected with 4,500 government medical officers serving under health department threatening to tender mass resignation on October 27.

Speaking to mediapersons here on Monday, Karnataka State Government Medical Doctors Association President Dr T A Veerabhadrayya said “we have been placing our demands for the last six years. The government has failed to fulfill our demands. The government has failed to hold talks with the doctors who are seeking fulfilment of demands. After tendering resignation, we will give an ultimatum of one  month to the government either to accept our resignation or fulfill our demands.”

The demands are district hospitals should come under the purview of the Department of Health and Family Welfare, failing which super-specialists and specialists will be confined to taluk hospitals or health centres all their life with no scope of working in district hospitals.

The salary of the hospital staff coming under ZP should be released directly. The government should appoint CMO to all the district and taluk hospitals. The vacant posts should be filled on the model of Tamil Nadu. Those doctors who are on contract basis should be given basic salary of Rs 28,000 and other perks. After three years of serving on contract basis, their services should be regularised.

Dr Veerabhadrayya said that the government should supply medicines to all the hospitals coming under the purview of Health and Family Welfare department. Those doctors who pursue higher education should be paid honorarium on time. Instead of non clinical seats, clinical seats should be allotted to them to pursue higher education, he added.

He said dental oral health committee should be constituted with dentist as its members. Doctors should be given the post of Food Protection and Safety Officer. A medical manual should be prepared.

Pay disparity

“The government should rectify pay disparity between the government doctors working under the Department of Health and Family Welfare and doctors appointed in hospitals attached to medical colleges. Fearing transfer and work pressure, many doctors are not showing interest in joining service under the health department,” he said.

“Under medical education department, those who have completed six years of experience get salary of Rs 76,000 per month while it is only 47,000 in the department of Health and Family Welfare. Those with six to 13 years of experience get Rs 1,29,000 as salary in Medical education department while in Health department the doctors get only Rs 62,000.

Those with above 13 years of experience get Rs 1,38,000 salary in medical education department while it is only Rs 71,000 in health department. “The doctors in the health department work under tremendous pressure and work round the clock. Those with medical education department work only for six hours a day and do not have fear of transfer.”  Dr Veerabhadrayya said that the State government had invited applications to fill the post of superspecialists in government hospitals.

The government had received only 300 applications and 150 had attended the interview. Of the selected only 65 have joined the service. “Inspite of 4,000 doctors graduating from medical colleges every year, the government hospitals are facing 60 per cent shortage of doctors. The government has failed to attract doctors to the government sector,” he lamented. 

“Owing to shortage of doctors, the health schemes could not be implemented effectively. The government had issued a circular to treat mentally ill patients twice a week in all the taluk centres. When there are shortage of psychiatrists in the state, how to implement the circular effectively,” he asked.

Association office-bearers Dr Chandramohan, Dr Nikin Shetty, Dr Shashidhar, DK district Association President Dr Rajesh among others were present.