62 per cent medical consultant posts lie vacant in BMC hospitals

Despite increasing the monthly salary of specialty medical consultants to Rs 75,000 in hand, the 18 Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) peripheral hospitals in the city are facing an acute staff shortage of 62 per cent.

There are total 217 posts in five branches of medical consultants — medicine, pediatrics, gynecology, surgery and anesthesia in these hospitals. Out of these only 84 seats have been filled up, while remaining 133 posts are lying vacant for years.

Despite repeated request to Directorate of Medical Education and Research (DMER) to provide doctors to fill up the gaps, the condition is still the same. According to the BMC’s proposal submitted to DMER, bonded doctors will have to work for six months in a peripheral hospital after working for six months in any of the three tertiary-care hospitals (KEM, Sion and Nair).

Despite several attempts to contact Dr Sanjay Deshmuskh, additional commissioner (health), BMC, there was no response. However, talking to The Asian Age, Sunita R. Yadav, president of Public Health Committee, said that Rs 75,000 isn’t enough for the doctors as they are paid Rs 1-2 lakh in private hospitals. “To help them to gain more money, we have allowed the doctors to practise in private after office hours. But still they aren’t coming to these hospitals.”

She also highlighted that the doctors are scared to work in these peripheral hospitals. “The patients in these hospitals come from rural backgrounds that often scares doctors as they often are vulnerable to assaults by family members of patients. So, they prefer working in private hospitals,” she added.

The staff crunch is leading to excessive work pressure on doctors who are practicing at peripheral hospitals. “With passing time, the number of patients is increasing in these hospitals. But the number of medical consultants is not increasing that would have helped in guiding the bonded students and decreasing the pressure on us,” said a doctor from the gynecology department at KB Bhabha Hospital, Kurla that doesn’t have a single medicine consultant for the three approved posts.

To attract more medical consultants to these hospitals, they are given several perks. Their take home salary has been increased to Rs 75,000 with work timings between 8 am and 4 pm along with a weekly off. They are also allowed to practice in private after duty hours. But despite this, the hospitals are scrambling with staff crunch.

Satish Pawar, Directorate of Health Services said, “In health, there are several alternatives. In some cases, doctors opt for practicing in private hospitals and in other; they start their own clinics. There are around 11 districts where we are ready to pay Rs 1.50 lakh but doctors aren’t coming to treat patients.”

Out of the total 53 approved posts for medical consultants in medicine in these 18 hospitals, only 2 posts have been filled, one each at KB Bhabha Hospital, Bandra and Bharatratna Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar Hospital. Rajawadi Hospital, Ghatkopar doesn’t have a single medical consultant has been appointed in medicine. Similarly, in pediatric out of the total 41 posts, only 19 posts have been filled, while other 22 are lying vacant. The situation is alike in other three departments in all the peripheral hospitals.

When The Asian Age tried to talk to Dr Mahendra Wadiwala, Chief Medical Superintendent of BMC peripheral hospitals, he refused to make any comment.