HYDERABAD: The health department has announced that up to 20 per cent of doctors, nurses and other cadre working at a place for five years or more will be transferred to different stations. The aim of this move, officials said, is to create a balance of specialist services across hospitals in Telangana.
As per a government order (GO) issued late on Friday night, transfers would made be based on valid requests by other doctors from the same speciality/cadre. The requests, in such cases, would be considered ‘against clear vacancy’, by shifting those nurses and doctors who have put in the longest service beyond five years in the same place.
“Transfer and postings of doctors will be restricted to specialist posts, to which they belong. Specialists of a given speciality will not be posted in any post earmarked in a different speciality,” the order said, further specifying that mismatch of posts by speciality would not be allowed.
In case of nursing personnel working in specialised disciplines in teaching hospitals like maternity, paediatric care, intensive care units, operation theatres, trauma, burns wards, emergency etc, the staff would not be shifted to nonspecialist locations, the order added. For shifting of these nursing staff, a certificate from the heads of department and superintendent concerned will be a must.
Apart from levelling out the number of specialists in every hospital, the move, doctors say, would also curb corruption in hospitals. In recent incidents, long-serving doctors at certain hospitals were nabbed for issuing fake medical certificates.
“Also, while there are a lot of experienced teachers in some teaching hospitals, many hospitals, especially those in peripheral areas, lack this facility. The rotation of senior doctors will be helpful for students,” said Dr G Srinivas, advisor, Telangana Junior Doctors’ Association.
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