Now medical college principals can focus on healthcare, research: Govt

To avoid confusion, bring accountability and relieve principals of medical colleges in Jammu and Kashmir from the routine administrative matters so that they can devote more time on academics, the Jammu and Kashmir government on Wednesday assigned duties and responsibilities to administrators, personal officers and administrative officers of Government Medical Colleges and subordinate departments of Health and Medical Education Department.

In its order the health and medical education department has clarified that the positions of administrators, Personal Officers and Administrative officers have existed in Medical Colleges, Srinagar and Jammu for several years.

The purpose of these positions is to assist the Principals of these Medical Colleges, who are the executive heads of the institution, so as to relieve them of day-to-day routine administrative matters; the Health and Medical Education Department, earlier, vide Government Order of 2004 defined the powers, duties and functions of the Administrator, Associated Hospitals and submission of certain issues by the Administrative Officers and Personal Officers through Administrators to the Principals; the role and responsibilities of these officers requires further clarity to avoid confusion and to bring accountability; a Medical College is essentially an academic institution and consists of the College and Associated Hospitals.

The Principal of a Medical College provides academic leadership and facilitates research. This role of the Principal shall be impacted if he/she has to deal with routine administrative matters or personal matters of employees, it is, therefore, imperative to strengthen the role of the Principals as the academic head of the Institution so as to enable them to devote more time to Health Care, Academics & Research and to assign tasks of a routine nature to other functionaries;

“Extensive consultations were held with all the stakeholders including the Principals of Medical Colleges, Srinagar and Jammu and some other Heads of Departments regarding assigning of duties and responsibilities to the Administrators, Personal Officers and Administrative Officers of Government Medical Colleges, Srinagar and Jammu and Administrative Officers of new Government Medical Colleges and, other Subordinate Departments of Health and Medical department. Based on such consultations, it has been decided to define the duties and responsibilities of these officers. Now, therefore, in supersession of all previous orders on the subject, it is hereby ordered that the duties, responsibilities and functions of the Administrators, Personal Officers and Administrative Officers of Government Medical Colleges, Srinagar & Jammu and Administrative Officers of new Government Medical Colleges, Government Dental Colleges, Jammu/Srinagar, Government Ayurvedic Medial College, Akhnoor, Jammu, Government Unani Medical College, Gandetbal, Kashmir and other subordinate organisations of Health and Medical Education Department.

The duties included- supervision of Non-Gazetted employees in Medical College, personal matters of all employees {(Gazetted/Non Gazetted) viz. promotions, seniority lists, APRs, departmental enquiries/vigilance cases/in-situ promotions etc.), public Grievances and their redressal, timely reference of vacancies, ensuring updated seniority lists, as on 1st January of each calendar year, of all the categories of employees (Gazetted/Non Gazetted), service records of all employees (Gazetted & Non Gazetted), service records of the staff engaged under academic arrangement, records of staff engaged on outsourcing basis, budget and Planning matters, chairman of Survey Boards (Administrator/Administrative Officer, as the case may be), chairman of Local Purchase Committee upto Rs.25000/- (Administrator/Administrative Officer, as the case may be), craining of Non-Gazetted Employees, all matters related to Estates Division of Medical College(s) particularly providing of accommodation to staff/students, maintenance of Government accommodations, electrification, sanitation, cleanliness in and around hostel premises etc., monitoring of funds provided by the J&K NHM under various schemes and providing of utilization certificates thereof, monitoring of Hospital Development Fund and other similar funds on monthly basis and its utilization thereof, RII Act/Rules, draft formulation of Recruitment Rules, all Information Technology (IT) related issues and timely updation of official website(s), vigilance matters of the Medical College(s)/departments, all the affairs of the student’s Hostels with regard to services and utilities, legal Matters, all matters related to support and utility services including transport and canteen, sanitation and cleanliness in the Medical College. And security in Medical College premises.

The procedure/hierarchical system for disposal of the above matters in respect of Government Medical College, Jammu/Srinagar shall be that the Administrative Officers shall route the files to the Administrators through Personal Officers. The Administrators shall dispose of the routine issues at their level as per the laid down rules and regulations and shall place all other matters as required, before the Principal concerned for approval. The procedure/hierarchical system for disposal of the above matters in respect of new Government Medical Colleges, Government Dental Colleges, Jammu/Srinagar, Government Ayurvedic Medical College, Akhnoor, Jammu, Government Unani Medical College, Ganderbal, Kashmir, shall be that the Administrative Officers shall submit all important matters before the Principals concerned while disposing of routine matters at their level.
In respect of other organizations, viz Directorate of Family Welfare, MCH & Immunization, Drugs and Food Control Organization etc. the Administrative Officers shall submit all the important matters to the Head of Departments concerned while disposing of routine matters at their level.

Meanwhile, The government likely to ban private practice of doctors in the Medical Colleges of UT, Officials privy to the development revealed Wednesday.

The development comes close on the heels of recommendations of medical experts constituted on the directions of the High Court that had strongly advocated a blanket ban on private practice of doctors in J&K in the interest of patient care.

“We are well aware of the fact that private practice of senior and middle-rung doctors is taking a big hit to patient care across the UT. It is most likely that we will start with banning the private practice in medical colleges of the UT first. A meeting will be held to discuss the issue in a few days,” a senior officer in the Health department said
Experts said that a large number of doctors despite getting handsome salaries still go for private practice and take the share of the unemployed doctors who neither have a place in Private nor in Government sector. “Those doctors are forced to leave for other states in search of jobs,” said an expert, wishing not to be named. “The teaching of MBBS students and the Postgraduate students by the faculty in the Medical Colleges of Jammu and Kashmir and the quality of patient care has deteriorated due to doctors’ main interest in private practice.”
Another expert pleading anonymity said that the patient care will improve only if the government announces a blanket ban on the private practice of doctors.

“Ban on the private practice by the doctors will encourage the establishment of Private clinics and corporate hospitals in rural areas of the union territory and shall play a great role in providing medical facilities to the patients in remote areas who otherwise have to run to cities for treatment,” he said.

He said that on an average, a doctor in GMC performs just two to three operations in a week and same doctor may do eight to ten operations in Private nursing homes in just a few hours. “There is mushrooming of private hospitals run by government doctors and more patients are treated at private hospitals nowadays,” the expert said. “By indulging in Private practice, the government doctors get overburdened and this definitely affects the quality of services provided to the patients as well as the mental and physical health of the doctors who don’t get enough time for themselves to relax.”

Doctors association President Dr. Nisar Ul Hassan said that private practice of doctors is definitely taking heavy toll on patient care, medical research and education.

“Most of our doctors spent their time in private hospitals and very less time is being given on medical education and research due to which we are unable to produce quality doctors,” he said. “Government doctor is government servant for all the 24 hours of the day and permitting private practice is bound to affect the discharge of official duties of government doctors.”

He said that it is ironic that full time government doctors are allowed to run private hospitals due to poor and underprivileged people are suffering who also deserve better care and can’t afford to go to private hospitals.
“There should be complete segregation of sectors like those who want to work in private sector, they should be allowed to go and new doctors should be recruited who will work only in medical colleges,” he said, adding that “doctors use government hospitals as recruiting grounds for their private practice and patients have to wait for months together to get their turn at government hospitals which delays treatment and they are forced to go to private clinics.”