Banning private practice will not improve functioning of hospitals
SRINAGAR: Clarifying the word Head of Department (HoD), Medical Faculty Association (MFA) today said that senior faculty members who officiate as HODs have no executive or financial powers, nor are they entitled to any financial benefits. The MFA said that the HoDs cannot even communicate directly with the Government.
The only designated HODs in GMCs and GDCs are Principal/Dean and Medical Superintendents of associated hospitals, it said.
The senior most faculty member officiates as HOD by tradition for smooth running of that particular department purely for academic purposes. HODs further questioned as to how denying private practice to them was going to improve the services and why within the same state different yardsticks of banning practice for different health and medical institutions is being. It was observed in an executive meeting of the MFA, said an MFA statement.
In the meeting Senior faculty members officiating as HODs argued that there was no Government order which designates a senior faculty member as HOD of a particular specialty, said sources.
In fact senior faculty members who officiate as HODs have no executive or financial powers, nor are they entitled to any financial benefits. They even cannot communicate directly with the Government.
Despite depleted faculty strength the existing faculty was catering to not only the increasing patient load but enhanced admissions at graduate and postgraduate levels and was also keeping pace with prestigious medical institutions of the country both by way of academics and patient care, the MFA said.
If there is any reason of concern it is the apathy of the Government over the years towards working of these prestigious institutions. Filling of faculty positions, adopting MCI norms in vogue, improvement of infrastructure are some of the issues which demand Governments urgent attention, it added.
Banning the practice of HODs is in no way going to help to streamline the functioning of hospitals – which is primarily duty of administration . The fact that senior faculty is reaching superannuation and is ready to resort to voluntary premature retirement in the absence of financial security ,such a move may further add to the already depleted faculty strength with its consequences. Government as health planners and doctors as health care providers must ensure that needy patients are benefited. Banning private practice runs the risk of adding to miseries of the patients, said MFA General Secretary Dr. Sajad Qazi.
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