Government Notice to MCHs to Relieve Medical Officers

Struggling with an alarming degree of absenteeism that has seriously affected healthcare services, the State Government has put medical colleges on notice to immediately relieve medical officers on completion of PG, DM or MCh studies.

Struggling with an alarming degree of absenteeism that has seriously affected healthcare services, the State Government has put medical colleges on notice to immediately relieve medical officers on completion of PG, DM or MCh studies.

The Government has taken strong exception to the increasing trend of medical officers posted in the district hospitals and other peripheral hospitals not reverting to their positions after completion of studies.  They are either overstaying in the colleges or going on long leave without any authorisation. More disturbing is, many simply go absconding.

There are 343 PG seats in the three medical colleges of the State. Of those, 87 are reserved for in-service candidates, 86 for direct candidates from Odisha and the rest for all-India students. With the in-service candidates being medical officers, the trend is hurting the Government big time as it grapples with an acute shortage of doctors.

Faced with such situation, the Health Department has warned college authorities of strict action on the issue. It is found that deans and principals of MCHs are not relieving the medical officers immediately on completion of higher study or training on the plea of staff shortage or disruption in patientcare. In many cases, doctors are allowed to join a new course on the very day of completion of the course without authorisation from the Department.

“No medical officer should be allowed to continue in the medical college without authorisation. The college authorities shall not relieve any of the doctors to join any new course or training in or outside the State without approval of the Government. The matter will be viewed seriously,” Health Secretary PK Mohapatra has warned in a communication to the deans and principals of the three Government medical colleges.

The State has a sanctioned doctors strength of 4,369 of which 1,221 are lying vacant. Of 979 posts in the KBK districts, as many as 403 are lying vacant. The matter of concern is that a good number of the posts with doctors in position has fallen victim to absenteeism.

The Government has launched a crackdown on absenteeism in the ranks and has dismissed 34 while initiating proceedings against 110 others. It has also directed the CDMOs to furnish monthly reports so as to keep a tab on the doctors posted in the peripheries.

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