Faculty crunch: NMC directive adds to Health Dept’s problem

Tribune News Service

Pratibha Chauhan

Shimla, June 21

With the Health Department already struggling to get faculty for its four new medical colleges at Chamba, Hamirpur, Nahan and Mandi, the NMC condition to have biometric attendance could compound the problem further, putting an end to the stop-gap arrangement made during the inspections.

Biometric attendance now must

• The state government had been deputing senior faculty from the IGMC and Tanda at the new medical college whenever the NMC inspection was scheduled
• Now, with the NMC seeking one year biometric attendance, the faculty will have to be permanently posted at these four new medical colleges
• The exodus of doctors from the IGMC and Tanda medical college has added to the worries of the Health Department

The exodus of doctors from the Indira Gandhi Medical College (IGMC) and Tanda medical college in Kangra to the AIIMS at Bilaspur and Jammu has added to the worries of the Health Department. In the last one year, more than a dozen doctors from the two medical colleges have joined either at Bilaspur or Jammu and two more doctors have requested permission from the state government. The exodus of doctors has resulted in the Nephrology Department at the IGMC getting closed.

“The National Medical Commission (NMC) has now made it mandatory that the attendance of the faculty at all the medical colleges should be biometric so that one year record could be accessed,” revealed M Sudha Devi, Secretary, Health and Family Welfare. As such the surplus senior doctors at the IGMC and Tanda will be asked to give their options for joining at the four new medical colleges, facing 30 to 40 per cent faculty shortage, she added.

In the past, the state government had been deputing senior faculty from the IGMC and Tanda at the new medical college whenever the NMC inspection was scheduled. Now, with the NMC seeking one year biometric attendance, the faculty will have to be permanently posted at these four new medical colleges.

Himachal has faced a lot of problem in expanding its health infrastructure for want for specialist doctors, willing to serve in the remote areas, including the four new medical colleges. In fact, shortage of faculty had resulted in the Ner Chowk Medical College in Mandi facing the threat of being derecognised.

The four new medical colleges have been given recognition by the NMC for one year only as compared to three or five years in case of the two old medical colleges at Shimla and Kangra. Each of these four medical colleges has 125 MBBS seats, including 25 for the economically weaker sections.

Since the Health Department is in the process for applying for starting of post -graduation courses at the four new medical colleges, the government is keen that not too many doctors are allowed to join outside the state. “Since most of these doctors have availed benefits, including doing their PG while in service, it is unfair for them to move to greener pastures rather than serving in their state,” said a senior official.

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