Amritsar ESI hospital medical supdt charge-sheeted for absence from duty
Amritsar Punjab health minister Balbir Singh Sidhu has ordered the charge-sheeting of medical superintendent Dr Prempal Singh of Employees State Insurance Corporation (ESIC) Hospital, Majitha Road, for absence from duty. The minister had paid a surprise visit to the hospital on Saturday.
Earlier in the day, the minister, along with civil surgeon Dr Prabhdeep Kaur Johal and senior medical officer (SMO) of Amritsar civil hospital Dr Arun Sharma, held a meeting with medical officers across blocks of the city and inspected facilities at the civil hospital. Dr Prempal did not attend this meeting.
“We have been receiving complaints about the functioning of the ESI Hospital and its staff. When I reached the ESI hospital, no one there knew about the whereabouts of the MS, with the SMO claiming that he was in Patiala to attend a conference. We will file a charge-sheet against the MS for being absent from his duties, as he needed to inform the authorities before leaving station,” Sidhu said.
Dr Prempal claimed, “I wasn’t absent from duty, but had gone to Patiala to attend a conference of doctors. I can prove this with evidence. If my bosses still doubt my performance, I will resign.”
After the civil hospital inspection, the minister directed the hospital to stock every medicine to ensure patients did not have to buy these from outside. “The hospital could purchase medicines for patients from user charges also,” the minister added.