Lankan Ranger
ELITE MEMBER
Sri Lanka's GMOA concerned over Indian medical personnel
The Government Medical Officers’ Association (GMOA) last week expressed concern over a possible free flow of Indian medical personnel opting to practice in Sri Lanka with the implementation of the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement, (CEPA).
There are, at present, also drawbacks in the Health Act which permitted an influx of doctors from other countries to practice here. That in itself was not one for conjecture, but the dubious aspect of what was now permitted was that ill qualified doctors were allowed to practice without any pre-qualification applicable to the operative health services in this country, says Dr. Bimantha Gunasekera, Secretary of the GMOA.
He said the Health Department had no data base on its personnel or its human resources. There were now about 30,000 nurses in the country. Intense disorganization was extreme in the department that at no time did they have data on personal movement of each person’s qualifications or where they were.
With a membership of approximately 14,000 professionals, the GMOA is distinctly concerned that health services throughout the country are progressively facing a retrograde situation of nonchalance and their attempts at dialogue with the Ministry, and Minister Maithripala Sirisena had met with negative responses.
Answering questions on the lucrative private practice, he agreed that doctors do private practice, but that was because they were forced to earn some extra money to augment their take-home salary.
‘We are on call 24 hours a day, and we need some relief for communication and transport and also living accommodation", he pointed out.
The GMOA is now 85 years in existence, initiated in 1926 and registered as a trade union in the 1940s. Since then, over the past decades the association sustained their demands for better working conditions including equitable emoluments for doctors, the Secretary explained.
Apart from CEPA, the GMOA also expressed concern over the Sri Lanka Medical Ordinance, Sri Lanka Medical Council and the Private Medical Institutions Registration Act. "We are also concerned about the chaotic on-going situation at the Medical Supplies Division of the State Pharmaceuticals Corporation, leading to an acute shortage of drugs.
He said the GMOA has also made representations to the Health Ministry about the Private Nursing Homes Regulation Act.
Dr. Gunasekera said the SLMC is the accredited organization that had within its purview control of the medical profession, and is a credible body of independent professionals who were not under political control. "There were moves to politicize the SLMC, which the GMOA resisted".
The GMOA met the President about four years ago, and on being appraised of their concerns, he had instructed the Minister at that time (Nimal Srirpala de Silva) that the GMOA’s areas of concern should be addressed and effectively handled. He had given the Minister three months to carry out his instructions, but Dr. Gunasekera claimed the Presidents instructions "had been largely ignored".
It was the former Minister of Health who had proposed and was instrumental in parliament passing the Private Nursing Homes Regulation Act, and the Private Health Act in 2006. Both enactments were harmful to the interests of the Department of Health. In consequence, the GMOA had resisted its implementation. More so, this Act had stifled the duties Sri Lanka Medical Council which nullified its appointed tasks, he explained.
"The GMOA’s area of contention was that although we had the wherewithal to be helpful to the Department of Health, we were largely ignored and contrary measures taken were detrimental to health services of this country", he said. "The present Minister Maithreepala Sirisena had also not been instrumental in addressing these anomalies".
Dr. Gunasekera said the purchase and supply of drugs by the State Pharmaceuticals Corporation is in complete disarray that nobody could track movement of drugs throughout the country through an efficient data base. Systems are so primitive that naturally there were consistent shortages of drugs. This meant that patients had to purchase their drugs from the private sector.
Pharmaceuticals stockists in the private sector were distinctly better organized because they could give information at the click of a computer key board, on movement of drugs island-wide, he said.
The GMOA wishes to convey to its membership that there are a high caliber group of professionals in the committee who are constantly concerned about the issues confronting its members. It wants to ensure that these issues are addressed and resolved within context of what the GMOA stands for, he noted.
The incumbent President of the GMOA is Dr. Vajira Senaratne, a Cardiologist.
The Island
The Government Medical Officers’ Association (GMOA) last week expressed concern over a possible free flow of Indian medical personnel opting to practice in Sri Lanka with the implementation of the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement, (CEPA).
There are, at present, also drawbacks in the Health Act which permitted an influx of doctors from other countries to practice here. That in itself was not one for conjecture, but the dubious aspect of what was now permitted was that ill qualified doctors were allowed to practice without any pre-qualification applicable to the operative health services in this country, says Dr. Bimantha Gunasekera, Secretary of the GMOA.
He said the Health Department had no data base on its personnel or its human resources. There were now about 30,000 nurses in the country. Intense disorganization was extreme in the department that at no time did they have data on personal movement of each person’s qualifications or where they were.
With a membership of approximately 14,000 professionals, the GMOA is distinctly concerned that health services throughout the country are progressively facing a retrograde situation of nonchalance and their attempts at dialogue with the Ministry, and Minister Maithripala Sirisena had met with negative responses.
Answering questions on the lucrative private practice, he agreed that doctors do private practice, but that was because they were forced to earn some extra money to augment their take-home salary.
‘We are on call 24 hours a day, and we need some relief for communication and transport and also living accommodation", he pointed out.
The GMOA is now 85 years in existence, initiated in 1926 and registered as a trade union in the 1940s. Since then, over the past decades the association sustained their demands for better working conditions including equitable emoluments for doctors, the Secretary explained.
Apart from CEPA, the GMOA also expressed concern over the Sri Lanka Medical Ordinance, Sri Lanka Medical Council and the Private Medical Institutions Registration Act. "We are also concerned about the chaotic on-going situation at the Medical Supplies Division of the State Pharmaceuticals Corporation, leading to an acute shortage of drugs.
He said the GMOA has also made representations to the Health Ministry about the Private Nursing Homes Regulation Act.
Dr. Gunasekera said the SLMC is the accredited organization that had within its purview control of the medical profession, and is a credible body of independent professionals who were not under political control. "There were moves to politicize the SLMC, which the GMOA resisted".
The GMOA met the President about four years ago, and on being appraised of their concerns, he had instructed the Minister at that time (Nimal Srirpala de Silva) that the GMOA’s areas of concern should be addressed and effectively handled. He had given the Minister three months to carry out his instructions, but Dr. Gunasekera claimed the Presidents instructions "had been largely ignored".
It was the former Minister of Health who had proposed and was instrumental in parliament passing the Private Nursing Homes Regulation Act, and the Private Health Act in 2006. Both enactments were harmful to the interests of the Department of Health. In consequence, the GMOA had resisted its implementation. More so, this Act had stifled the duties Sri Lanka Medical Council which nullified its appointed tasks, he explained.
"The GMOA’s area of contention was that although we had the wherewithal to be helpful to the Department of Health, we were largely ignored and contrary measures taken were detrimental to health services of this country", he said. "The present Minister Maithreepala Sirisena had also not been instrumental in addressing these anomalies".
Dr. Gunasekera said the purchase and supply of drugs by the State Pharmaceuticals Corporation is in complete disarray that nobody could track movement of drugs throughout the country through an efficient data base. Systems are so primitive that naturally there were consistent shortages of drugs. This meant that patients had to purchase their drugs from the private sector.
Pharmaceuticals stockists in the private sector were distinctly better organized because they could give information at the click of a computer key board, on movement of drugs island-wide, he said.
The GMOA wishes to convey to its membership that there are a high caliber group of professionals in the committee who are constantly concerned about the issues confronting its members. It wants to ensure that these issues are addressed and resolved within context of what the GMOA stands for, he noted.
The incumbent President of the GMOA is Dr. Vajira Senaratne, a Cardiologist.
The Island
