Health department should immediately expel 324 doctors
The health department has the highest number of government employees taking unauthorized leaves. Most of them are doctors and nurses. Even after the expiry of long leave, they care not to return to work. Show-cause notices are being ignored. Many of them are currently in foreign countries drawing high salaries, couching in the comfort of an idyllic life.
The unauthorized leaves have caused a dilemma as there exists a legal barrier to appointing new candidates. Patients solely dependent on medical colleges and general hospitals are suffering due to the dearth of doctors. Many patients are placed on gruelling wait for days before the concerned doctors reach them for treatment. This dereliction of official duty shall not be entertained and the health department should urgently adopt a rule amendment or action to expel those absent from service illegally.
The Department of Health has announced that it will speed up the process to expel 324 doctors who are illegally absent from service. 33 people were expelled through various orders in the last few days. It is also known that the rest will be expelled soon. A total of 600 people are on unauthorized leave in the health department. Of these, 276 are on probation. Action is being taken against those who have abstained from service since 2008. Of these, only three people have been expelled by the Medical Education Department. Those who have been away from service for ten to fifteen years should be dismissed en masse. It will open doors to candidates willing to work in state hospitals.
The recent trend followed by health department workers is nevertheless alarming. They get a prized job with the government service, only to take a long leave quickly. They move to foreign countries and settle there to enjoy the comfy life drawing attractive salaries. When the retirement age knocks on the door, these people return to their home country and rejoin work, only to qualify for government pension. The government is splashing lakhs in money to help a medical student on merit to complete studies and practice house surgency. All this is aimed at the strong belief that the student when becoming a doctor would dedicate time in their home state. It is inane to stress that point since it is all within the discretion of an individual to select their choice of place or work. They can go abroad, take up another profession or do what fancies them. But it should not be done at the cost of harming poor patients in Kerala. The Health Department should not delay taking steps to bring in new norms for granting leave.
337 people including doctors are absent from medical colleges alone. A show cause notice has been issued to them. As soon as the 15-day period to return to work is over, the dismissal order will be issued. It is also necessary to conduct a committee of experts to study the big exodus from the department.