Health grievance redress panel gets 350 complaints in 26 days

Kolkata: The state-level grievance redress panel, formed to address the issues of healthcare professionals, has received around 350 complaints in 26 days. The majority of these complaints came from MBBS passouts who have not yet secured jobs in govt hospitals, according to sources.

The committee was constituted by the Bengal govt on Oct 1 when junior doctors restarted cease-work at govt hospitals across the state, pressing for various demands and reforms in the healthcare sector, including ensuring their safety and security at all medical establishments.

Initially, the committee had seven members but now the number stands at six following the resignation of one member.

Over 100 of the complaints that have come are from MBBS passouts who appeared for interviews, but their recruitment process has not yet begun. Around 70-80 students from different medical colleges have written to the committee, requesting to defer the MD/MS examination, which is slated in Dec this year, sources said.

Apart from jobs and postponement of exams, the rest of the complaints pertain to threat culture on campuses and Ayush.

Similarly, a good number of healthcare professionals seeking transfer from existing medical colleges have also requested intervention.

It received grievances from several doctors whose interviews were conducted, but results for promotions have not been published.

Sourav Datta, a reputable surgeon who is chairman of the committee, said: "We have received complaints from healthcare stakeholders and are prioritizing the mass problems. We are sending recommendations accordingly. We are in touch with the health secretary."

Many plaints have been made against West Bengal University of Health Sciences, such as irregularity in conducting exams.

"Our target is to see what we can contribute towards more ethical exam practices conducted by the university," said a member of the committee.