Contract doctors seek regularisation of services

• The members of Andhra Pradesh Contract Doctors Association stage protest and demand govt to consider their services while filling up 501 vacant posts in the State
• Association president Dr Prasanth claims they perform post-mortem and family planning operations on par with regular doctors

Vijayawada: Members of Andhra Pradesh Contract Doctors Association staged a protest at Lenin Centre here on Monday, demanding that State Government issue regular notification considering the services of contract doctors while filling 501 vacancy posts. Addressing a gathering, Association president S S Prasanth said that there were more than 350 doctors working on contract basis in government hospitals and primary health care centers across the State.

“We were rendering our services for the past three years by performing the duties of regular doctors by even carrying out postmortem and family planning operations in the Agency and Tribal areas. Despite our services, the government had not bothered to regularise the services, though it got approval from the financial department. He wanted contract doctors to be given preference in selection like the earlier notifications issued by the Commissioner of Family Welfare and Department of Health in the years 2007, 2010 and 2013.

Measures should be also taken by the government in providing service quota for the doctors to pursue post-graduation besides offering their services, he said. Prasanth also said that representations were also submitted to Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu and Health Minister Kamineni Srinivas over the issue. No measures were taken by the government till date. "We perform the duties on par with regular doctors, but government is not acknowledging our services,” Dr Prasanth regretted.