Nagaland Medical Students’ Association demands transparency in medical officer recruitment

The Nagaland Medical Students’ Association demands transparency in the recruitment process for Medical Officer posts. They allege these positions are currently occupied by contractual doctors.

The Nagaland Medical Students’ Association (NMSA) expresses its profound disquiet and dissatisfaction with the recent advertisement issued by the Nagaland Public Service Commission (NPSC) vide Advertisement No. NPSC-1/04 (VOL-I) dt.28.03.2024 for the Combined Technical Services Examination 2024, which glaringly omits recruitment for medical officer positions.

This omission comes as a stark contrast to the growing need for healthcare professionals in the state, which has been grappling with a doctor shortage. 

According to the NMSA, it has been three years since medical officers were last recruited through the NPSC CTSE in 2021. Despite the government's awareness of the state's deficit in healthcare providers—one doctor for every 4,056 people, far from the WHO-recommended ratio of one doctor per 1,000—there has been a worrying lack of initiative to recruit for over 183 sanctioned medical officer posts currently occupied by state contract doctors and contractual COVID doctors appointees.

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The Nagaland Medical Students’ Association wishes to underscore the plight of more than 250 medical graduates since the last exam in 2021, who are eagerly awaiting an equitable, transparent, and merit-based opportunity to compete in the state NPSC Combined Technical Services Exam for Medical Officer positions. The burgeoning number of medical graduates each year only intensifies the competition, further emphasizing the urgency for recruitment.

The practice of hiring doctors on a contractual basis not only undermines the prospects of current students and fresh graduates but also affects the contract doctors themselves, given the upper age limit for the NPSC CTSE. The stagnation of recruitment through NPSC CTSE is poised to have a detrimental impact on the state's public health services.

Moreover, NMSA strongly advocates for medical officer recruitment (MBBS) as the sole entry route into the state government's Health and Family Welfare Department and opposes the creation of a specialist cadre for recruitment in the NPSC CTSE. The shortage of specialist doctors in district hospitals across the state can be more effectively addressed by reorganizing specialist doctors stationed at primary health centres (PHCs) and community health centres (CHCs) to district hospitals(DH). Reorganisation of the specialist doctors posted in PHCs and CHCs to district hospitals can enhance the utilization of the valuable expertise and skills of these specialists. By transferring them to district hospitals equipped with advanced diagnostic and treatment technologies, we can elevate the quality of public healthcare services and optimize the delivery of care to our communities.

NMSA also calls for the inclusion of all 22 seats occupied by in-service doctors who have joined the new state medical college, Nagaland Institute of Medical Science and Research (NIMSR). These seats should be advertised for recruitment of medical officers through NPSC's written and viva voce examinations.

The association urgently calls upon the government to initiate prompt recruitment measures for all sanctioned medical officer posts currently occupied by state contract doctors and contractual COVID doctors appointees, as well as the 22 Medical officer posts, thus granting all eligible graduates a fair chance to qualify by merit and contribute to the state's healthcare services.

NMSA appeals to all conscientious citizens, civil society organizations, student bodies, and especially the government to prevent the erosion of the healthcare system by ensuring that medical officers are recruited through a process that is advertised, written, and viva qualified by NPSC, ensuring a meritocracy that provides the population with the healthcare they rightfully deserve.