State to terminate services of 450 absconding doctors

THE LEGISLATORS COMPLAINED THAT SEVERAL GOVERNMENT HOSPITALS WERE SHORTSTAFFED AND DOCTORS WERE NOT AVAILABLE TO TREAT PATIENTS.

NAGPUR: The state government has decided to sack 450 doctors from service for being absent from duty. The government will also move the Medical Council of India, asking it to suspend their licences as punishment.

Several doctors employed by the government at its hospitals or clinics often go missing after joining service.

These duties are mostly in the rural areas. It is found that such doctors join duty but remain absent after a short period and instead work with private hospitals and start their private practice.

There are 450 such doctors reported absent from government hospitals across the state. The government has decided to terminate their services, state’s public health minister Dr Dipak Sawant announced in the state Assembly on Tuesday.

The issue was raised by several legislators during a debate on supplementary demands (financial provisions over and above what is allocated in the annual budget) of the public health department. The legislators complained that several government hospitals were short-staffed and doctors were not available to treat patients.

A health department official said the government would not only sack the absconding doctors but also move the Medical Council of India to suspend their licences. The doctors cannot practise without licences and will have to submit their explanation to the MCI.