Not caring for the public opinion most of the doctors of State health services are of the view that they should be allowed to do private practice along with the benefit of Non Practice Allowance (NPA). On Monday the Government doctors boycotted the OPDs in protest against the vigilance department action on CMS of Kahsipur hospital Dr BC Joshi. The doctor was allegedly caught for seeing patients at his home and charging fees. The association of Government doctors the Provincial Medical Health Service (PMHS) asked the State Government to change the nomenclature of NPA to Special Pay.
Former president of PMHS Dr BC Ramola told The Pioneer that it is not possible to stop the doctors from practising after their duty hours. He claimed that there is a larger conspiracy to shelve NPA. Senior Physician Dr NS Bisht echoed the sentiments of Dr Ramola. He said that in India the number of post graduate doctors are very less and it would be improper and against public interest to ask them not to practice. “I am of the opinion that payment of NPA should be stopped only when the doctors are not asked to perform tasks like VIP duty, post mortem duty, Mela duty, Char Dham Yatra duty and other official duties”, he said.
Some of the doctors however were of the opinion that their fellow doctors are wrong to demand private practice when they are getting NPA from the Government. One of a retired doctor said that the doctors should be asked to choose between NPA and private practice. He said that only 10-15 per cent doctors are engaging in private practice and are bringing disrepute to the entire community of government doctors. Interestingly in the meeting of PMHS at Doon hospital on Monday, senior cardiologist Dr KB Joshi said that the doctors should ask the Government to stop paying NPA so that no one raises questions on their private practice. His suggestion met instant protest from all quarters as most of the doctors want the double benefit of NPA and private practice.
The NPA is paid to the Government doctors as an incentive so that they do not engage in private practice and thus do justice to the patients they are serving. The NPA is 25 percent of the basic salary of the doctors in the state.