Kidwai reeling under acute staff shortage

Kidwai Memorial Institute of Oncology, the premier institute for cancer treatment in the state, is facing acute staff crunch. According to its director, the hospital is functioning with just about 30% of manpower.

Dr C Ramachandra, the director of the institute, said for 650 beds, there are about 820 staff, including doctors, nurses, technicians etc. There is a shortage of 839 staff members.

Most of the Group D workers, about 360 of them, including security guards and cleaning staff, are outsourced.

The hospital proposes to build a 450-bed capacity building for which addition of 885 staff needs to be recruited in a year.

“We already have people who have agreed to construct the 450- bed hospital. I am waiting for the government to sanction the posts required. The chief minister has been hopeful. But we just want files to move at the earliest,” the director added.

He said the institute was creating six new departments for which additional staff was required.

Once the additional 450 beds are ready, the Kidwai would have about 1,100 beds, becoming the largest cancer care hospital in the country.

The scene a year ago

Ironically, experienced contract staff from the hospital were removed a year ago. About 200 contract staff members, working for over 10 years, had protested seeking regularisation of their service.

According to one of the protesting members, who now works in a private hospital, said most of those who protested could not continue working at the hospital. “The hospital asked us to write exams and go through the procedure for regular appointment, to which we agreed. We had sought 5% of weightage as we were all experienced staff members.

“But the hospital and even the high court declined our request. Only three of the 200 contract workers could clear the regular appointment procedure,” added the former staff.

Most of these experienced staff missed out on the regular post with some five to 10 marks.

DH News Service