Hospitals to find hard to deal with ''ghost faculty'' with RFID coming

With the Medical Council of India stressing on Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) system to track the teaching staff, the medical colleges both in the government as well as private sector will find it hard to recruit ''ghost faculty'' (who actually do not exist and remain on paper only) for a day at the time of annual inspections. Many of the colleges resort to such practice so that they get approvals from MCI for increasing the number of seats.

Various Medical organisations such as the Indian Medical Association and the Kerala Government Medical College Teachers Association (KGMCTA) have welcomed the move to introduce biometric scanners. However, they also opined that apart from the new systems that the MCI is introducing, an overall revamp of the medical education system is the need of the hour.

The MCI has given instructions to all Medical colleges to immediately set up the RFID system. Through the system, The details of the attendance of doctors can be monitored even from Delhi, which will help in ensuring that that no impersonation is taking place during routine inspections.

The new instructions gain significance in the wake of concerns raised among the medical fraternity with respect to the redeployment of doctors to the two new medical colleges at Idukki and Manjeri.

Indian Medical Association national president A Marthanda Pillai said that IMA supported the move to make the system fool proof but this only cannot bring in any comprehensive change in the whole system. ''We have to see how far the system is going to be effective, he said but cautioned that problems could also crop up if more stringent measures are brought in.

Source: The new Indian express 

http://epaper.newindianexpress.com/478558/The-New-Indian-Express-Thiruvananthapuram/13-04-2015#page/1/1

Govt overlooking merit in appointments to DME

In the wake of the increasing number of Medical Colleges in the state, the appointment to the post of Director of Medical Education (DME) has raised serious concern with allegations that people without necessary qualifications are being tipped for the post.

Despite people having more experience in teaching and clinical care, administrative experience, management qualification and research papers, it is alleged that the government is considering those who have no such experience, which is alleged to be out of political and other pressures.

Stating that merit was never considered for appointments, Kerala Government Medical College Teachers Association (KGMCTA) secretary Dr C P Vijayan stressed that qualified academicians should only be made DMEs as they can only only bring in novel ideas for developing the medical education sector, which is already said to be deteriorating in the state.

It is reliably known that Kottayam Principal Dr A Remla Beevi and Cochin Medical College Principal Dr Praveen Lal have been considered for the post by the Departmental Promotion committee. It is learned that the government is considering Dr Beevi to the post as the other one is about to retire in a few months.

Generally seniority of principals are taken when making appointments for the post. Even if this criteria is considered, the sources said that there are several others who are more senior than the two who are now being considered. It is also alleged that Kottayam Principal does not have published papers and also falls short of the required 10 years of teaching experience. According to the Medical Council of India norms, ten years of teaching experience and ten published papers are needed for becoming principal or to get appointed to key posts, which are violated here.

Source: The newindian express 

http://epaper.newindianexpress.com/459104/The-New-Indian-Express-Thiruvananthapuram/16-03-2015#page/5/1

Row Over Govt Move to Extend DME Service

With the Director of Medical Education's tenure to end this month, the government's move to give extension for another two more years has led to wide criticism, with many see it as a prelude to the government's attempt to increase the retirement age of teachers in the Medical Education Service.

It is also alleged that the government that shows much enthusiasm in giving extension to the existing higher officials, it has not shown interest in making any new recruitment. Already a list of doctors, of which 900 have specialty qualification, is pending and is alleged that the PSC was ready to fill the posts within two weeks if the Directorate of Medical Education had notified the posts.

Pressure is alleged be mounting on the government as well as the health department for extending the period of the DME. However, sources said that if the extension was given, it would only create an unnecessary precedence. The move is also seen as a prelude to the government's intention to increase the retirement age in the Medical Education Service to 62.

Meanwhile Kerala Government Medical College Teachers Association (KGMCTA), which has always stood against increasing the pension age, said that they vehemently opposed any such move. ''The Association opposes the retirement age or extension of service of any individual or in general,'' KGMCTA general secretary Dr C P Vijayan said. Moreover, he also pointed out that the seven long years of the present DME was not fruitful.

However, officials in the health department said that there was no such pressure for extending the DME's tenure. They said that the DME can continue till the end of the academic year. But it is said that there was no superannuation as the post was only an administrative one and not academic. 

Source< The New Indian Express

http://epaper.newindianexpress.com/381029/The-New-Indian-Express-Thiruvananthapuram/24-11-2014#page/4/1

 

Govt says redeployment of MC Doctors based on DME report

Even as the Medical College teachers threaten to launch an agitation against redeploying doctors at the Medical Colleges to run the newly set up Medical colleges at Manjeri and Idukki, the government has stated that the decision to redeploy them was taken based on a report of the Director of Medical Education (DME).

The government has made it clear that the DME, who was asked for a report on the staff pattern, had given a report that there were more teachers as per the norms of the Medical Council of India in the existing medical colleges. ''When the file for creating posts at the new medical colleges was sent to the Finance Department, it had asked for a report of the staff pattern in the Medical Colleges. The DME was entrusted with the task and the director had reported that there were more teachers in the Medical Colleges as per the MCI Norms,'' Health Minister V S Sivakumar said.

On the notice served by the Kerala Government Medical College Teachers Association (KGMCTA) that they would go for a strike if Government issues an order with respect to redeployment, he said that the government has nothing to do in this. ''It is their head who said in the report that the medical colleges had more teachers than the prescribed MCI norms and the doctors can be redeployed. It was only after this report that the government had moved ahead in the issue,'' he said.

Source: The new Indian express 

http://epaper.newindianexpress.com/376154/The-New-Indian-Express-Thiruvananthapuram/17-11-2014#page/3/1