Take action against Govt Doctors doing private practice: HC to UP Govt

Prayagraj: Despite the government's strict ban on private practice by doctors employed at government medical colleges and hospitals, the Allahabad High Court received a complaint about a government doctor referring a patient to a private hospital under the pretext of better treatment. In response, the court has directed the Uttar Pradesh government to take appropriate action against those involved in private practice.

As per the PTI report, the court also directed the principal secretary (medical education) of UP to file a personal affidavit disclosing the status of the government's action. As per a government order dated August 30, 1983, government doctors shall not be entitled to private practice. In lieu of private practice, a government doctor shall be paid non-practising pay or allowance or both, as the government may specify from time to time.

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The judgment was passed recently by Justice Rohit Ranjan Agarwal while hearing a petition filed by Dr Arvind Gupta, who is an HoD and a professor in the state-run Moti Lal Nehru Medical College here. The present case arises after a complaint was filed by one Rupesh Chandra Srivastava before the state consumer forum for wrong treatment given to him by the petitioner, Dr Gupta, in a private nursing home in the Prayagraj district.

Law Trend reports that during the proceedings, the court expressed its concern over the continued practice of government doctors neglecting their duties in public institutions to work privately. Therefore, it mandated the principal secretary of medical education in Uttar Pradesh to submit a personal affidavit by March 26, detailing the actions taken against the doctors in question.

Medical Dialogues in January reported about this case where the court directed the Uttar Pradesh government to conduct an inquiry to determine whether doctors appointed at state-run medical colleges were engaging in private practice at nursing homes.

The court, in its January 2 order, also directed the state’s Principal Secretary, Medical Education and Health, to inform it as to whether a head of department (HoD) in Moti Lal Nehru Medical College, Prayagraj, who is the petitioner in this case, is entitled to practice in any private nursing home or not. The court also directed that on the next hearing, the counsel for the petitioner shall address the court as to how the petitioner had given treatment to the complainant in the private nursing home.

On January 8, the high court had expressed concern over government doctors not attending patients in medical colleges and government hospitals and directed the state government to come out with a policy to stop the private practice of doctors.

In pursuance of the earlier direction of the court, a personal affidavit of the principal secretary (medical education) was filed before the court in which it was stated that 37 district magistrates (DMs) have submitted their reports to the state government, which are at the stage of examination.

The court noted that in the previous affidavit filed by the principal secretary, it was mentioned that disciplinary proceedings were initiated against doctors found indulging in private practice. In the present affidavit, there is no averment as to the stage of disciplinary proceeding and the action taken against them, the court said.

The court expected the state government to conclude the disciplinary proceedings as soon as possible so as to send the message across the board to all those doctors who are employed in government hospitals, especially in medical colleges and district hospitals, so that they should refrain themselves from private practice.

In one of its previous hearing, the court observed, "It has become a menace that the patients are being referred and dragged to private nursing homes and hospitals for treatment, and the doctors who are appointed by the state government either under the provincial medical services or in the state medical colleges are not treating and attending the patients in medical colleges and government hospitals, and just for the money they are being referred to private nursing homes and hospitals."

The next hearing in the case has been scheduled for March 26.

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