GOLDEN PRINCIPLES: Health Minister R. Ashok (centre) releasing posters on Consumer Awareness Programme initiated by Drugs Control Department in Bangalore on Tuesday. M.N. Ramamurthy, Drug Controller, and Usha Ganesh, Principal Secretary, Health Depar tment, are seen. — Photo: Bhagya Prakash K.

BANGALORE: Health Minister R. Ashok on Tuesday said he would transfer within a week specialist doctors who hold mismatched positions in government departments in the city, to the districts.

"I will resist efforts from lobbyists who want to prevent this move. The transfer orders will be issued within a week," he told presspersons at the launch of a consumer awareness programme organised by the Drugs Control Department. The Minister said he had convened a special meeting with the heads of several departments to discuss the issue.

Proposal for two cadres

Mr. Ashok said the Government was thinking of a proposal that called for the division of the health department into two cadres — administrative and medical. This was necessitated, he said, because of the mismatch that existed. There were several specialists who performed administrative functions as the head of hospitals.

He said that, according to the proposal, the administrative cadre was to be filled with doctors who had completed their MBBS and the medical cadre with specialists.

Of the 5,069 sanctioned posts for doctors in government hospitals, 2,005 posts have been earmarked for specialists. While 252 such posts were vacant, in 444 posts there was a gross mismatch of skills.

In the Maddur Government hospital in Mandya, head injury patients were treated by an ENT surgeon. In the city more than 800 doctors, including specialists such as ophthalmologists, gynaecologists and paediatricians, worked in the Bangalore Mahanagara Palike overseeing the functioning of garbage lorries and conservancy staff.

Mr. Ashok said that in Kolar hospital, he found that there was not a single person admitted to the 100-bed hospital. Even though the hospital had an X-ray facility and operation theatre, the facilities were not being used. The Health Minister admitted that several specialist doctors take up any work in the BMP so that they could remain in the city and continue their own work. "This will have to change. The BMP has the power to recruit its own doctors. It should do that."

He said once the issue of the mismatch was addressed, there would not be any vacancies in district and taluk-level hospitals. "We have enough doctors."

Mr. Ashok said that his priorities were to ensure that the mismatch of doctors was sorted out, cleanliness was maintained in hospitals, drugs were properly dispatched and doctors reported to hospitals in time.

The Health Minister released posters on "Ten golden principles for safe medication," which included tips on checking the expiry of the drugs, ensuring that an individual gets a receipt for the drug; safe blood donation, which provided tips to blood donors and safe transfusion tips for those who received blood.

Mr. Ashok said the Health Department would take stern action against the manufacturers and distributors of spurious drugs. The Health Minister also threatened action against pharmacists who did not posses a licence. Principal Secretary of the Health and Family Welfare Department Usha Ganesh attended the event.

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