Vacancies hit rural health in KBK

Vacancies hit rural health
The Telegraph (Kolkata), June 17, 2009

Bhubaneswar, June 16: Health services in rural and tribal areas are in disarray because of vacancies in posts of doctors in government-run periphery health centres.

According to the government’s own admission, at least 965 posts of doctors were lying vacant across the state by the end of last month. Out of total vacancies, 251 are specialist designations and the rest are posts of assistant surgeons and doctors holding administrative posts, said health minister Prasanna Acharya.

The government is aware of large-scale vacancies in doctor and paramedics posts in the backward KBK region (undivided Koraput-Bolangir-Kalahandi districts), admitted Acharya. Government doctors are reluctant to serve in the KBK region and other backward districts because of poor infrastructure, official sources said. To address this, the government has announced special pay.

And allowances for the doctors serving in this remote and backward region.

To ensure availability of doctors in the KBK and other backward regions, the government has made the posting of newly recruited doctors in these regions mandatory for three years.

Listing out the steps taken by the government to fill up posts of doctors, Acharya said recruitment of assistant surgeons through the Orissa Public Service Commission was under process. Chief district medical officers had been authorised to recruit allopathic doctors, including retired doctors up to age of 68 years, on contractual basis to fill up the vacancies.

In order to attract doctors to serve under the government, the entry level of doctor has been upgraded to class-I ( junior) rank. It has been decided to grant specialist allowance of Rs 3,000 per month to regular specialist doctors and a post-mortem allowance of Rs 500 per case, he informed.

Besides, the medical service cadre has been restructured to create more promotional avenues for doctors serving in peripheral health centres.

Keeping the dearth of doctors in view, the number of MBBS seats in the three government medical colleges has been increased from 107 to 150 each. Permission has also been accorded for opening of three private medical colleges with a combined strength of 300. Opening more colleges in government, private and corporate sectors is also being encouraged, added Acharya.