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| SKIMS doctors brazenly violate ban on private practice | | | Mohammad Hamzah
Early Times Report
Srinagar, Mar 31 : Last year, authorities at Srinagar's Sher-e-Kashmir Institute of Medical Sciences (SKIMS) issued a notice in newspapers which read: "The private practice by any medical or paramedical member of SKIMS has been treated as cognizable offence under Section 21 of the (RPC), effective from 10th July 2001."
The notice carried names of some 171 faculty members of the SKIMS, urging the general public to contact the Institute authorities if any of the members was found indulging in private practice. It also went to warn that any doctor found violating the ban would be "imprisoned for a term which may extend to three years."
However, it's no secret that many senior doctors from the SKIMS operate brazenly in their private clinics. A couple of them were caught red-handed by sleuths of the Vigilance some years ago. That did not, however, stop other doctors from continuing their illegal practice.
In fact, if SKIMS insiders are to be believed, nearly two dozen prominent doctors indulge in private practice. They include doctor who examines more than 100 patients at his residence-cum-clinic in Hyderpora area of the city every evening and on Sunday.
To avoid any trouble, most of the doctors violating the ban on their private practice write prescription on plain papers that do not carry their names and other details. Also, in some cases, a chemist located outside the doctors' home collects the fee.
"A gastroenterologist who operates from his home in Srinagar has found another innovative way to carry on his clandestine practice. Patients have to arrive before 6 am at his clinic, which shuts down by 7.30 am," the sources said.
Private practice by the SKIMS doctors has always been a contentious issue here. The state government had imposed a ban on the private practice by doctors at SKIMS after the latter launched an agitation in 2004 demanding they should be treated at par with their counterparts from AIIMS, New Delhi, vis-a-vis salary and other benefits.
The then government grudgingly gave in to the demand but with a rider: like AIIMS, SKIMS doctors wouldn't be allowed to indulge in private practice for which they would be compensated in the form of Non-Practicing Allowance (NPA). Since then, the private practice stands officially banned and the doctors have given a written pledge that they would not indulge in private practice.
But some doctors not only continue with their private practice, they also provide perfunctory treatment to patients in the hospital in their bid to discourage them from visiting government-run hospitals and to encourage their private practice.
It may be recalled that in 2011, former Chief Minister Omar Abdullah's office constituted a so-called special squad to keep an eye on some SKIMS doctors suspected of indulging in private practice. The squad included SKIMS's Joint Director and officials from Vigilance Organisation and other government departments as well. The squad was specifically tasked to launch frequent raids on suspected clinics and act on the complaints against any doctor. A couple of clinics were raided and the doctors found busy in private practice were booked by the Vigilance. The raids were, however, soon abandoned for unknown reasons. |
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