Severe healthcare shortages leave Malerkotla in crisis

Availing adequate healthcare facilities at government centres in the district remains a distant dream for approximately 500,000 residents in the localities of Malerkotla, Amargarh, and Ahmedgarh subdivisions.

The severe shortage of medical officers, including specialists, and a lack of support staff, coupled with insufficient funds to meet routine expenses, were identified as the primary factors behind the poor state of affairs. This is despite claims from authorities that they are making their best efforts to address the situation.

Rationalisation of existing posts and an end to the four-year hiatus in the regular recruitment of doctors have been suggested as essential measures to bridge the gap between the number of sanctioned and filled posts for physicians and paramedical staff.

Although authorities at the Civil Surgeon’s Office, operating at the district’s Civil Hospital, failed to provide comprehensive data on staff strengths across all three subdivisions, observations made by The Tribune revealed none of the government healthcare centres were adequately staffed with medical officers, specialists or paramedical staff.

This shortage has led to the underutilisation of medical equipment and paraphernalia, as there is insufficient staff to operate it, including technicians, attendants and drivers.

Acknowledging the dissatisfaction expressed by patients and their attendants, the in-charges at the district’s healthcare centres said the lack of facilities and acute staff shortages often led to frustration among doctors and support staff, which, in turn, caused discontent among patients.

“Although all our staff, including medical officers, specialists and paramedics, are trying their best to serve the ailing public, their efforts often go unnoticed due to occasional dissatisfaction among patients and their attendants,” said Dr Jagjit Singh, Senior Medical Officer at the Malerkotla Civil Hospital. He also noted the Civil Surgeon’s Office is waiting for its own dedicated premises to operate independently.

A lack of coordination among physicians working under different systems was also cited as a barrier to the smooth functioning of government healthcare centres. Currently, healthcare staff is provided under at least four separate programmes — the Punjab Health Department, the National Health Mission, outsourced staff and contractual personnel.

Doctors, most of whom are members of the Punjab Civil Medical Services Association, led by the president, Dr Akhil Sarin, argue that ending the four-year hiatus in regular recruitment would significantly improve services at government hospitals.

“Although the state government has initiated a process to appoint 600 medical officers, all stakeholders are still waiting for the results of the test conducted over two months ago, on September 4,” said Dr Sarin, adding that the Health Minister, Dr Balbir Singh, had assured the swift completion of the recruitment process.

Authorities have acknowledged the health department is facing a double challenge — not only has there been a hiatus in the regular hiring of medical officers and specialists, but there is also a significant problem retaining them. Many specialists leave government service after a short time to pursue more lucrative opportunities in the private sector, thus depleting the public health system’s expertise and capacity.

Being the youngest district in the state, Malerkotla is particularly affected, with a higher percentage of vacant doctor posts at its healthcare centres, including civil hospitals, community health centres, primary health centres, and village dispensaries.

Interestingly, the district’s Civil Hospital has yet to be upgraded from a sub-divisional hospital and for Ahmedgarh and Amargarh, the idea of a subdivision-level hospital seems far off.

Malerkotla MLA Dr Mohammad Jamil Ur Rehman and Amargarh legislator Prof Jaswant Singh Gajjanmajra acknowledged the concerns raised and claimed that substantial improvements had been made since the Aam Aadmi Party came to power.

They said although efforts have been made to resolve the problems that have been brought to their attention, the staff shortages would soon be addressed once more doctors are appointed following the results of the recruitment test already conducted.