Editorial
New move by health authorities
Doctors' commitment to society should be unquestionable
It is heartening to learn that the government has decided to be tough on the truant doctors. As part of its plan to ensure regular attendance of doctors in hospitals, medical colleges, and healthcare centres, the health directorate is conducting surprise visits to the hospitals. Not surprisingly , the directorate got a dismal picture of healthcare at the field level after its officials visited some hospitals in the northern districts. Doctors were not found in hospitals during the duty-hours.Not that the story is a new one. People have long been complaining that the absence of doctors in the rural healthcare centres makes it impossible for them to get medicare facilities worth the name. So one has the feeling that the move to ensure attendance of doctors in hospitals should have been made long ago, considering the sufferings of patients. The health authorities have identified a major problem since delivery of health services is not possible as long as doctors remain absent from hospitals. However , supervision and inspection of hospitals should not be a seasonal affair. The authorities have to evolve ways and means of making sure that doctors perform their duties with a sense of commitment. Of course, the doctors themselves must be aware of their responsibility towards society. We believe the associations of doctors can play an important role in setting things right in the health sector. Even a sound primary healthcare infrastructure will fail to attain its objectives if doctors are not found in hospitals. A World Bank report has apparently awakened the decision-makers to a reality which was far from a secret. Obviously, it is difficult to believe that they were not aware of the problem arising out of poor attendance of doctors in hospitals. However, we hope they will make some determined efforts to solve the problem on a permanent basis.
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