20K doctors respond to call for help; only 700 found eligible

There is an acute shortage of doctors at Covid care centres-2 (CCC-2) and hospitals despite the Directorate of Medical Education and Research (DMER) making Covid-19

There is an acute shortage of doctors at Covid care centres-2 (CCC-2) and hospitals despite the Directorate of Medical Education and Research (DMER) making Covid-19 duty mandatory for qualified doctors. Although 20,000 doctors responded to DMER’s call for doctors to report for duty in May, so far only 700 fulfil the criteria laid down by DMER, said the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC).

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On May 4, DMER issued a circular asking the 25,000 registered doctors in the city to report for 15-day stints of compulsory Covid-19 duty. Non-attendance would be considered a breach of the Medical Council of India Code, which could lead to a doctor’s licence being suspended or cancelled.

Of the 20,000 registered doctors who responded to the circular, DMER selected 4,246 and sent this list to BMC for screening. The shortlisted doctors were between 25 and 45 years of age since DMER disqualifies doctors above the age of 55 for Covid duty. Those working at civic, state government and central-government run hospitals were exempted. Later, doctors already practising at hospitals were also exempted. After screening the shortlisted doctors, BMC found only 700 doctors were available.

“Most of the doctors are out of India. How are we supposed to assign them Covid duty in Mumbai? Also, many of the doctors are already working in private hospitals. We can’t uproot from their duty and assign them Covid duty. There is also a need for non-Covid doctors. We need general physicians who run clinics,” said a senior BMC officer on condition of anonymity.

Though there is no available data for the number of physicians running private clinics, Maharashtra Medical Council (MMC) estimates around 5,000 such doctors are available in Mumbai, who are below 55 years old. “The notice was mainly aimed at doctors who have clinics. They can work both in civic hospitals and their clinics simultaneously,” said Dr Shivkumar Utture, president, MMC, who clarified that approximately 5% of the registered live abroad.

With the number of active Covid-19 cases rising to 28,682, BMC says more doctors are urgently needed. “We need a permanent solution to meet the shortage of doctors. After every 15 days, we can’t go through the same process of scanning or hunting for doctors,” said a senior official with BMC’s health department.

As per the latest data from BMC, 26% of the available beds for Covid-19 patients are occupied. Of the 4,355 beds in dedicated Covid health centres (DCHCs) — where moderately-ill patients are admitted — only 794 are vacant. Only 558 beds out of the 6,095 in dedicated Covid hospitals (DCH), where critically ill patients are admitted, are available.