The Hindu : Kerala News : Private medical technicians face bleak future

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Wednesday, Feb 01, 2006

Kerala

Kerala

Private medical technicians face bleak future

Staff Reporter

Paramedical Council Bill does not clarify on the eligibility for a technician to register

KOCHI: Most of the 35,000-strong workforce of technicians in private medical laboratories across the State has been rendered unqualified with the Government promulgating an Ordinance on paramedics.

Though the Kerala Paramedical Council Bill gives a definition of the medical laboratory technician, it does not clarify on the eligibility for a technician to register, said P.C. Kishore, general secretary of the Kerala Private Medical Technicians Association here on Monday.

The Bill only recognises technicians who have undergone the course in recognised institutions. But 95 per cent of the institutions in the State are in the private sector, which provides its own certificates and diplomas. About 95 per cent the private medical laboratories employ the workforce available in the State, he said.

Background of Bill

According to Mr. Kishore, the Association had given a letter to the Government to bring about a regulation way back in 1991. A draft Bill was prepared then and this has been promulgated as an Ordinance after 15 years without considering the changes that have taken place in the field since then.

The letter was given with a view to seeking some regulation on the mushrooming of medical laboratories and the institutions that had been churning out technicians without a standard degree. There are more than 300 to 400 laboratories in each district, apart from the ones run by hospitals and clinics. Another 100-odd laboratories in each district cater to X-ray diagnostic procedures.

All the Bills regarding medical practitioners, nurses and pharmacists in the health industry have protected the existing workforce when providing a quality measure in standards for the future. But this Bill does not do that, Mr. Kishore said.

Plea to give a chance

The recognised institutions in the State will be able to churn out only about 300 technicians, which is nowhere near the number of required hands in the industry. There are very few seats, about 20 to 25 in a batch, for the course in medical colleges and institutes run by universities, he said.

There should be a provision in the Bill that seeks to give a chance to the existing workforce to prove their efficiency, said T. Vijaykumar, Director, Health Science, Calicut University. The Bill, no doubt, will result in many diagnostic laboratories being shut down for want of qualified staff, he said.

Automation

K.R. Panickar, the senior-most biochemist in the State, who retired from Thiruvananthapuram Medical College, said most of the present technicians were efficient but not qualified. With automation coming in the diagnostic field, there is little chance for human error. They need to be given a chance, he said.

In the absence of enough qualified people in the industry, a qualified supervisor is enough to guide the other staff in a laboratory, Dr. Panickar said. However, orientation, training and continuing medical education programmes are important to keep up with the latest technology and procedures.

A multi-specialty hospital or a laboratory where a pathologist or microbiologist is available should be allowed to train laboratory technicians, Dr. Vijayakumar said.

Standardisation

Standardisation of machines and equipment should be stressed to get the correct results, Dr. Panickar said adding there should be a national policy regarding the standards.

The State does not recognise any qualification other than the ones given by universities for the courses in medical colleges and other institutions under the universities even if they are efficient and competent, Dr. Panickar said.

The qualified personnel in the State should opt to go abroad, where the profession is much more lucrative, he said.

Whatever be the claims and counter-claims of the parties involved in the issue, for the 35,000-odd private medical technicians, a bleak future is staring in their face.

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