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| For GMC Anantnag doctors, lockdown proves a blessing in disguise | | | Saahil Suhail
Early Times Report
Anantnag, May 29: For a group of doctors, who work at Government Medical College Anantnag, the ongoing lockdown has proved a blessing in disguise.
The doctors mostly surgeons, according to highly placed sources, conduct major surgeries ‘secretly’ at private hospitals in the district to earn money while as few gynecologists too prefer to work at private nursing homes during this pandemic.
Sources revealed to Early Times that doctors were taking undue benefit of a government order that had restricted general public from visiting government hospitals for treatment.
On 17th of March 2020 after the outbreak of COVID-19, the union government directed all government and private hospitals to treat only sick and patients requiring emergency treatment. “All other patients requiring outpatient care/ follow-up care or elective cases including dental patients should not visit the hospitals,” reads the order, issued by the Ministry of Health, Family welfare and Medical Education Department.
Doctors at GMC Anantnag said that their few colleagues were taking undue advantage of this order and were visiting the hospital once or twice in a week.
“We are taking care of only emergency cases right now. During this lockdown we haven’t done more than forty surgeries while as in OPD we just see around fifty patients that too in the evening,” a doctor at GMC Anantnag disclosed, however wished not be named.
He said that departments like General surgery department, Department of orthopedics, ENT and Ophthalmology continue to remain closed while as the role played by Epidemiologists during this crisis also worrying.
He claimed that doctors mostly surgeons were visiting the hospital once or twice in a week. “At Hospital they refuse to conduct surgeries and cite government order in their defense but then they secretly operate patients in private hospitals that too in violation of COVID-19 protocol. At Government hospital a patient is being asked to get his COVID test done before the surgery but here in private sector these government doctors were conducting surgeries without such tests,” he said.
He said that the doctors were taking undue advantage of ill-conceived polices of Jammu and Kashmir administration. “Few days back the Divisional Commissioner Kashmir conveyed private hospitals, nursing homes, clinics and diagnostic Laboratories to resume normal business but major hospitals in South Kashmir continue to remain closed for poor. The administration must now open hospitals for poor and stop this open loot,” he said.
“We have held a large population hostage for just 8 COVID-19 patients who have been admitted in GMC Anantnag,” he said, adding 3 doctors and a group of paramedics were taking care of the infected persons.
Sources said that GMC Anantnag had around 300 doctors but just few were actively fighting a fight against COVID-19. “Warrior is the one who is on ground taking care of patients. A doctor who visits hospital once in a week can’t be called a worrier. Jammu and Kashmir Government must segregate hospitals into COVID and NON-COVID and provide care to ill and sick patients,” he said.
They also claimed that doctors, who work at Government Medical College Anantnag and its Associated Hospital-Maternity and Child Care Hospital Anantnag-have earned millions of rupees during this lockdown.
Repeated attempts to contact Financial Commissioner Health and Medical Education Atal Duloo failed as he didn’t attend telephone calls. |
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