Punjab’s all ESI (Employees’ State Insurance) hospitals and dispensaries now have cent-percent availability of doctors. For, the state Health and Family Welfare Department on Friday issued appointment letters to 50 Medical Officers (MOs) and five MO (Specialists).
Similarly, for the hospitals run by the Bhakra Beas Management Board (BBMB), the State Government has issued appointment letters for 11 specialist doctors and nine Medical Officers — filling up the 31 posts of doctors, earmarked for Punjab.
“These posts were lying vacant for more than five years on account of shortage of doctors in the Health Department. With the appointment on these vacant 55 posts of doctors, we have achieved the milestone of cent-percent availability of doctors in ESI hospitals and dispensaries,” said the State Health and Family Welfare Minister Brahm Mohindra.
Mohindra said that these posts of doctors and specialists doctors were vacant in the ESI hospitals and dispensaries since long which was the biggest handicap in providing the quality health services to the insured persons of lower income group working in industrial units or establishments.
The Minister said that recently, the Council of Ministers approved the proposal for filling up vacant posts in ESI hospitals on contract basis as and when they become vacant. “The contractual appointment is initially for one year and is extendable year wise. Medical Officer would get monthly remuneration of Rs 50,000 and Medical Officer (Specialist) Rs one lakh with an annual increase of three percent,” he said.
He said that to meet the urgent need, these posts have been filled on contact basis till the regular candidates are available. “As and when regular employees would be appointed by the Health Department, the services of contractual employees would be dispensed with,” he said.
Mohindra added that the Health Department has been entrusted with management and administration of six ESI hospitals and 69 dispensaries in the State. “Health Department is required to ensure adequate manpower in these ESI hospitals and dispensaries and to provide the medical facilities to the insured persons,” he said.
He said that the expenditure on running of the ESI hospitals and dispensaries is borne by the State and ESIC (a statutory enterprise of the Central Government) in the ratio of 1:7, that is 12.5 percent is to borne by the State and remaining 87.5 percent is to borne by ESIC.
There are 12.92 lakh persons covered under ESI scheme. Employees drawing monthly pay of less than Rs 21,000 working in industrial unit or establishments having 10 or more persons are covered under this scheme.