JAYKISHAN SHARMA finds that according to the recent chief minister information system progress report, out of the sanctioned 94,344 medical posts at various positions, 31,954 posts are lying vacant
Rajasthan is on the top among states with the shortage of specialist doctors. Rajasthan is facing a debilitating shortage of health specialists, including in basic disciplines such as surgery, gynecology and paediatrics, statistics compiled by the central health ministry show.
Rural primary health centres face over 18.5 per cent shortage of doctors, Rural community health centres face over 50 per cent shortage in surgeons, physicians, and paediatricians.
You don’t need an epidemic, however predictable, for the public health system to disintegrate. It is a matter of routine that patients share beds and doctors are overworked. The lack of health providers and infrastructure is the acutest in rural areas, where health expenses push people into poverty each year. Despite being routinely flagged, these shortages are rarely corrected. Learning from failure is rare, and course correction after mistakes is rarer.
Compulsory rural service after MBBS can be a good initiative only if a proper health system is in place to take care of both patients and doctors. There is an urgent need for the authorities to stop portraying doctors in bad light, assume responsibility, and acknowledge the holistic solution to the problem. If the current trend of blame and coercion continues, the country shall only be destined to an even more deficient and disgruntled medical workforce.
DNA view
It’s peak time the truth be propagated that increasing the number of doctors would be useless unless backed by a renovation of the public health infrastructure and technological experts. It is foolish to think that a doctor working in a PHC could deliver a satisfactory service in the absence of basic, life saving infrastructure, essential medicines, and ambulatory services. It would be senseless to expect a health expert to stay satisfied after distancing himself from his family, and putting up with the worst conditions, while many of his peers continue to be lured into the affluent private sector so favoured by the powers that be.
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