There was an article printed in one of the local dailies about the shortage of doctors in Goa (government) hospitals. Being from the profession I would like to offer my observations/ inputs on this grave situation.
Resident medical doctors are actually the first line (read backbone) of a hospital setup when it comes to admitting and referring to the concerned departments. To face a shortage at the first step itself, speaks volumes of how efficient our hospital setup is. No doubt the cream of the medical fraternity and in some instances, latest equipment, can be found at government hospitals, but how will the system function properly when there is no sync?
If you further read through the papers, the minister’s talk about unfilled vacancies due to shortage of applications from the reserved category. Does that mean to imply that general category candidates are applying but cannot be absorbed due to quota norms?
Is that a logical explanation that can be given to relatives of a loved one who did not survive because no timely treatment was provided, due to shortage of doctors from the reserved category?
Its high time the system undergoes a bit of an intellectual revamp in order to be at par with the best. Recently I had the opportunity to sit through a GPSC exam. Its fully computerized and there is no such interview involved, at least at the first stage. Well therein lies your second problem. Some of these vacant posts to be filled, are in the rural areas. If an experienced candidate is placed there, their clinical expertise could be used to treat the case, instead of referring to Margao/Bambolim hospitals. I have come across referrals for such mundane things, which unnecessarily increase the load at main government hospitals. In the bargain it is the patient who is the loser.
I would like to end by saying, nowadays people target doctors for any and every lapse in treatment, not understanding how demanding and stressful the medical profession can be. To make matters worse, it is a known documented fact that our hospitals are understaffed. So push for a better well balanced system in place, instead of just destroying property when things sometimes go awry.
