IN a surprise visit to 11 government hospitals and health complexes in eight districts including Dhaka on Tuesday, the Anti-Corruption Commission found 92 doctors out of a total of 230 absent at their workplaces. Eleven teams from the ACC made the visits between 9:00am and 2:00pm.
Recently, the ACC received allegations through its hotline — 106 — that patients were being deprived of medical services due to the absence of doctors in government hospitals and health complexes. Some doctors sign the attendance sheet once or twice a week to draw their salaries but remain absent throughout the month. The ACC matched the numbers of doctors present with the rosters of the hospitals and health complexes and found discrepancies almost everywhere. Eleven out of 99 doctors on the roster were absent at Sarkari Karmachari Hospital and Najira Bazar Mattri Sadan. Mugda General Hospital in the capital, however, had all doctors present during the ACC visit.
The scenario was even worse outside Dhaka. In the 250-bed Pabna Medical College Hospital, a total of 35 out of 49 doctors, including its Assistant Director Dr Ranjan Kumar Dutta, were found not to have arrived around 9:00am. They were supposed to be present within 8:30am.
It is unacceptable that doctors–who should be the most professional — should be involved in any kind of gross irregularity with regard to providing their services. Doctors must be the most punctual in their workplaces, as it could potentially be a matter of life or death.
Untimely medical services could also potentially lead to widespread medical calamity such as infections which spread very rapidly, so overemphasis on this point is essential. It is quite possible in this day to have rapidly spreading infections because doctors could not treat patients timely.
What we need is for our doctor — employed in both the public and private sectors — is to establish and maintain a more professional attitude with regard to their patients. They should not think only of making money and income generation. A proper attitude towards patients will ensure quality healthcare service to the citizens.
