Staff shortage numbs GMCH anesthesia dept

Severe staff crunch in all departments of the Government Medical College and Hospital (GMCH) is badly affecting teaching as well as functioning of the hospital for quite some time now. The anaesthesia department is specially affected. It has almost negligible staff and this is having a telling effect on all other departments, especially those conducting surgeries as operations cannot be done in absence of anaesthetists.

Anaesthesia department is critical to functioning of any big hospital. In GMCH, it is being run entirely with only one professor at the helm, three associate professors, and lecturers. Two posts each of professors and associate professors in the department have been vacant for almost a year and half.

"This shortage has severely affected the number of surgeries. Since over a year or more, the number of surgeries has fallen drastically. This is true not just for the major surgeries in gynaecology, orthopaedic, paediatric and accident cases but also the minor ones like appendix etc," said a senior professor of the college. An average of 37,500 surgeries each were performed in 2009 and 2010. To keep up with the number, around 9,350 surgeries should have been performed in the first three months of this year. The actual number is a mere 5,062. "We have to send back many patients of planned surgeries for months together for want of anaesthetists. We are mainly doing emergency surgeries," he said.

With the college undergoing Rs 150 crore expansion under the Pradhan Mantri Swasthya Surakasha Yojana (PMSSY), the hospital is slated to see a big increase in number of beds (to about 2600). The Gynaecology ICU is almost ready, trauma centre is in the offing and the Dr Ambedkar hospital is attached to the GMCH. "How can you go on increasing the patient load and not increase staff," asked a senior surgeon. With trauma centre anaesthetists are needed round the clock in much larger numbers.

But even the existing anesthesia staff is being shared for cardiac, gastro-enterology, nephro and neuro surgery at the Super Specialty Hospital (SSH) which is also a part of GMCH. "Adjusting the duties of the lecturers who are the ones only available in anesthesia at GMCH and SSH is a big task,'' said another professor.


GMCH authorities blame the slow functioning of the government machinery for staff crunch. "Promotions take along time in state-run establishments with procedure involving several people in powerful positions. Half of the positions at the hospital get filled through MPSC, which has not been able to advertise for a few months because of a stay order from the high court," clarified another professor.

This is not the only department of GMCH suffering from staff shortage. Nor are these important posts the only ones vacant. Severe shortage of nurses and attendants is also being faced by the institute for a long time. A senior staff nurse told TOI, "Compared to most colleges in state, GMCH is much better staffed but staff is unevenly distributed. Some departments are overstaffed while others have shortages. Among Class III and IV staff too the situation is bad. I know of at least 11 attendants not doing what they are supposed to do and instead are cooking in hostel mess. I believe we also have a severe mismanagement of manpower."

Another senior nurse echoed that sentiment. "There are plans of upgrading GMC and turning it into a posh hospital but what is the use if there are not enough people to run it. With an insufficient number of sweepers and cleaners, the new constructions would look old in no time," she added.