SUBHASH MISHRA
Dhanbad, Oct 17: Brushing aside the threats of the Jharkhand Health Service Association (JHSA), the frontal organization of government medical officers (doctors), state Health Minister Banna Gupta said that the government would not compromise with the government doctors over biometric attendance.
JHSA secretary Dr Thakur Mritunjay Kumar Singh had said that the chief minister has exempted the police department from biometric attendance in the name of emergency service. Health service is a major emergency service than any other department where duty roaster changes as per requirement. Even the court has ruled that Gazetted officers do not require who gives 24×7 hours of duty. “So, the JHSA has decided that no medical officer would not follow biometric attendance from October 21,” he said.
However, the health minister while interacting at an exclusive interview at Lagatar Media’s office in Ranchi today said, “Biometric attendance means discharging the duty with responsibility. The doctors have to work so what is wrong with biometric attendance?”
The minister further said that the government wants to bring smiles to the faces of doctors by providing them with due respect and strengthening their economic condition. “The government believes that health services would improve only after doctors, as well as patients, are happy,” he said.
Notably, the JHSA had shot off a letter to the Additional Chief Secretary (ACS) Health Arun Kumar Singh informing that since doctors are being made a subject of partiality in Ayushman Bharat Mukhyamantri Jan Arogya Yojna, they are compelled to skip the service at hospitals.
JHSA president Dr PP Shah and secretary Dr Thakur Mritunjay Kumar Singh had said that insurance payment of the hospital where government doctors provide his service is held up and would be cleared only after the state team reviews their work at the end of the month. But at the same time, bills of the hospital where government doctors do not provide service are cleared duly.
“Obviously, a private hospital would not call a government doctor as its Ayushman Yojna bills would be stranded due to him (doctor),” the JHSA secretary said adding that this was nothing but to stop the doctors from private practice.
“Since the health department does not pay the non-practice allowance (NPA) to medical officers, JHSA would not accept any ban on private practice. So, JHSA held an emergent meeting on Friday at the Ranchi IMA building and unanimously resolved to skip Ayushman Yojna service at the hospital,” said Dr Thakur Mritunjay Kumar Singh.
However, the health minister denied the charges that the government is imposing a ban on the private practice of government doctors. He said that doctors have been given relaxation to get attached to at least three hospitals for private practice after completing duty hours in their respective government hospitals but they would have to give equal services at government as well as private institutions.
“At a meeting with the representatives of the Indian Medical Association (IMA) and JHSA, Additional Chief Secretary Health and Mission Director, the government announced major relaxation to the doctors on private practice. We have sought suggestions from IMA and JHSA on Clinical Establishment Act and are trying to implement Medical Protection Act which can coordinate between doctors and patients,” Banna Gupta said.
The health minister also held the central government responsible for the reduction of 50 MBBS seats each in SNMMCH Dhanbad and MGMMCH Jamshedpur.
