TN plans to rationalise cardiologist posts, doctors raise concern, seek new positions

Chennai: While the Health Department aims to strengthen cardiology services in government medical colleges, its plan to rationalise existing cardiologist posts by upgrading, redeploying and surrendering excess posts has triggered concern among a section of doctors, who say redeploying doctors is not a long-term solution; instead suggested creating new posts.

According to an official communication sent by the Directorate of Medical Education (DME) and Research to deans of government medical colleges, details have been sought on cardiologist posts that can be upgraded, redeployed, or surrendered.

As part of the proposal, some associate professor posts are being upgraded to professor level. At the same time, nine posts, including one professor, one assistant professor, two assistant professors, and five senior residents, are set to be redeployed.

Additionally, nine senior resident (cardiology) posts are being newly created by surrendering nine excess junior resident posts, in line with NMC guidelines.

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In this process, cardiologists posted at Madras Medical College, Stanley Medical College Hospital, Kilpauk Medical College Hospital, Coimbatore Medical College Hospital, and Salem Medical College Hospital have been identified as excess under National Medical Commission norms and are being redeployed accordingly.

While doctors have welcomed the move to upgrade posts and strengthen manpower in cath labs, many have raised concerns over the continued reliance on redeployment instead of creating new posts. 

Commenting on this, a senior assistant professor in a medical college told The Hindu, "There are 18,000 to 20,000 doctors working across the three health directorates. Of this, at least 50% of the cadre - nearly 10,000 - work in the DME. There are specialists in the directorate, but when we take the number of super specialists into account, there are only 1,000 to 1,400 doctors. Only 10% of specialist posts are super speciality doctors in government medical college hospitals."

"Doctors have been urging the Health department to add at least 300 new posts of super specialists. We agree that new medical college hospitals require super speciality manpower and cath labs should be started for service delivery. But when the number of sanctioned posts for the super specialist cadre is less, existing posts should not be redeployed. Rather, new posts should be created," he said.

A government doctor said, “What we have been reiterating is that the cadre strength should be on the basis of patient load. MMC, for instance, is an important cardiology centre in Chennai and gets several referrals. Redeploying doctors from institutes like MMC will affect patient service."

He further added, "Posts are lying vacant owing to delays in counselling. Rationalisation of posts, especially that of super speciality, cannot be done on the basis of NMC norms as the patient load is twice the time higher than that can be handled by the existing Cadre strength. The department must increase the number of Super speciality sanctioned posts by at least 30%."

P. Saminathan, president, Service Doctors and Post Graduates Association, said that Tamil Nadu’s health human resources have been less than what the Indian Public Health Standards have recommended.

"Instead of the redeployment model, the Health department must create new posts. In-service doctors are hesitant to pursue super speciality (DM/MCh) courses, fearing lack of vacancies in medical colleges under the DME as seen year after year in NEET-Super Speciality counseling . If this redeployment policy continues, and if posts are going to be reduced further, TN’s health department, in the next five years, will face a lack of super speciality workforce to serve the ever increasing number of patients coming to government medical college hospitals," he said.

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