Times of India
27 April 2010
Pune, India
PMC Move Aimed To Meet Rising Demands, 312 New Posts To Be Filled At Civic Hospitals
To meet the demands of the growing population in the city, and the rising number of civic hospitals, the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) has decided to increase the number of posts for specialist doctors to 25. Till now, the PMC had just five specialist doctors – surgeon, radiologist, pathologist, microbiologist and paediatrician – for its hospitals.

Speaking to TOI, municipal commissioner Mahesh Zagade said that no new posts had been created in the last 20 years although the population had increased tremendously, and 23 new fringe villages had been added to the municipal limits.

“I realised that there is a dire need for additional health staff. We have sought the GB permission and have approached the state government to approve a massive strength in the health department. We should get the sanctions very soon. This will help in complete functioning of new hospitals established by the PMC, which need specialists,” Zagade said.

“I want to make the health department robust by making these recruitment as soon as possible. There has been a sudden spurt in population due to migration. Therefore, creating these posts was the need of the hour,” Zagade said.

As soon as the posts are approved, the civic body will start recruitment process to fill 312 posts of doctors, nurses and pharmacists. Of these, 25 doctors will be multi-specialists. Currently, the PMC has five experts and the total number of other doctors was 125. There’s 359 nurses and 73 pharmacists.

Zagade said he is also in the process of framing a special policy for hiring private doctors. “Details are still to be worked out, but the fact is that we need more specialists. Maybe, we can approach private doctors who can work on an honorarium. These doctors will have the expertise we require in special cases,” Zagade said.

Meanwhile, elected members claim that it was a longneeded requirement which the administration had been delaying.

During the general body meeting last week, elected members had raised a tirade against the civic administration stating that the newlybuilt hospitals are lying unused due to shortage of staff.

BJP corporator Ujwal Keskar pointed out that the post of the head of the health department too has remained vacant for more than one and half years, and another officer has been given the additional charge for it.

“Right from the head of the department and multi-specialty doctors to nurses and lower-rung employees – the health department is gripped with shortage of manpower. How can proper services be provided without adequate staff ? The procedures for recruitment have been delayed since years,” Keskar said.

He pointed out that the existing doctors are burdened with work and even the medical officers at the ward level are given works which require no medical expertise. “They are asked to do solid-waste management related work, which takes up all their time. In such a scenario, how can they devote time for medical problems,” Keskar asked.