IMA, Bihar Health Services Association plead for suspended doctors

PATNA: Bihar Health Services Association (BHSA) and state chapter of IMA have come to the rescue of doctors who faced government’s wrath recently on various grounds.
In a press release, the two professional bodies of doctors asked the government to withdraw suspension of Dr Bimal Karak and Dr Surendra Prasad and departmental proceedings against Dr D K Raman.
All of them were part of the technical evaluation committee of Bihar Medical Services and Infrastructure Corporation Limited. Incidentally, all nine members of the committee including these three doctors, have faced the flak for alleged irregularities in drugs purchase. When told that the government had given them more than 30 days to reply to showcause notices, a senior IMA functionary expressed ignorance about it and told TOI, “I was not aware of this. But in any case, these doctors merely gave recommendation.”
The IMA has also changed its stand on doctors’ participation in procurement of medicines. Earlier, they used to demand that doctors must have a say in drugs purchase. However, state IMA secretary Dr Sanjiv Ranjan Prasad said, “We want to give advice only on the drugs needed, not from whom are they to be purchased.”
State IMA also demanded that the government must revoke the suspension of ex-PMCH superintendent Dr Lakhindra Prasad and scrap the action taken against the HoDs of surgery, orthopaedics and urology of the hospital. Incidentally, the doctors faced flak after CM Jitan Ram Manjhi inspected the hospital on October 5.
Both the bodies also demanded that the doctors who have transferred at the behest of SDO or BDO must be restored to their original duties.