By Iqbal Kirmani
Srinagar: As the valley faces surging cancer cases, worse is, that the medical oncology department at Sher e Kashmir Institute of Medical Science Soura has only one faculty member that too after getting promoted. While no faculty has been recruited since a 13 years, posts advertised in 2007 are yet to be filled throwing critical patient care in limbo.
“Technically there is no faculty member in Medical Oncology deptt and presently the one Prof.Gull Mohd Bhat was promoted as Prof.Of Pediatric Oncology unit in 2015,” sources inside hospital disclosed.
The health ministry is on record saying that in last seven years, 26214 cancer cases of Cancer have been detected.
They confided that no faculty has been recruited since 13 years and the last appointments of Asst professor’s was done in 2005.
“2 Asst.prof posts were advertised in 2007 and the same was re advertised in 2011 and 2013, as there was no candidate available,” he said. .
From 2013 among five faculty members four have retired.
While Prof Mushtaq Ahmad retired in 2013, and Dr Manzoor Banday in 2014, Prof Abdul Rashid lone and Prof Sheikh Aejaz Aziz retired in march 2017, and feb.2018 respectively.
The lackadaisical approach of authorities about the critical oncology department could be gauged from the fact that last advertisement for Asst professor’s post was issued in July 2015 and interview was held after 2 and a half years in Dec.2017.
Five eligible candidates did appear for the interview as well, sources said, adding however till date no list have been made public that have they been selected or dropped.
“If they have dropped them then they ought to have gone for recruitment or urgency bases and if selected then what are they waiting for,” sources said.
Insiders say that there are clear 7 vacancies in the deptt.of Medical Oncology as there is no faculty in the department.
They also complained that the vacant posts not only are impediment in smooth functioning but hampers the vital patient care itself.
“We need to fill all the vacant faculty positions in the Deptt.of Medical Oncology for better patient care and training of MD and DM students besides for Nursing and other technical trainees,” they complained.
The officials of the SKIMS fear that such an approach by the authorities will push the capable people outside state to look for jobs and that will only be sending a wrong signal to medical fraternity but ‘shake the trust patients put on doctors’.
“How will you explain to patients that there is no faculty in Medical oncology,” they rued, adding the ‘brain drain will only add to woes of society’.
A senior official in the SKIMS, pleading not to be named, told INS that ‘it is the politics that ruined the recruitment process’.
“Since the governor has taken charge, we expect the final selection list in a few days,” he said.
