NIMS sordid drama puts patients’ lives in limbo

It is almost like the eternal triangle. Only that this time around it resembles a spicy no-holds-barred filmy thriller that could possibly have a Hitchcock influenced tragic climax whereupon one is left with no clue about the roles of the protagonists and the side-kicks in the entire sordid drama while the lives of patients are put in peril.

None of the three players (NIMS, MCI and the faculty) is willing to budge an inch given their steadfast belief in their own point of view, howsoever irrational it appears to be. Founded essentially as an orthopaedic hospital way back on December 22 in 1964, it got recognition from theUniversity Grants Commission (UGC) and Medical Council of India (MCI) after developing into a full-fledged multi-specialty hospital, in course of time.

In a way, the Nizam’s Institute of Medical Sciences (NIMS) put Hyderabad on the global map. The accolades it won for various firsts were to be the foundations on which the city staked a claim as the medical capital of India, thanks also to the advent of several corporate hospitals.

However, the sheen of five decades is losing out because of several acts of omissions and commissions, with most being played out by ego-ridden insiders, who were hell bent upon portraying themselves as power-mongers giving a damn to the very fabric of the noble profession.

Today, the pride of the State that epitomized quality medical care stands as the object of ridicule by all and sundry, much to the delight of the private players, who are benefitting from the element of mistrust in its administration and the disgruntlement among the workforce, most notably the faculty.

Alas, rather than address the ongoing mistrust within its structural hierarchy, the men at loggerheads are only rubbing salt into the wounds to further aggravate the situation and sound the death-knell. The open defiance to the proposed three-tier system in teaching hospitals is a mere tip of the iceberg or so it seems.

Unless resolved overnight, the impending strike by the faculty members (mass casual leave on Tuesday), against the implementation of the three-tier system whereupon posts of additional professors would become redundant, the ‘crippled’ NIMS would be a fit case for an emergency treatment in a qualitatively proven ICCU.

The faculty argument is not unfounded. If All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) can still pursue a four-tier system, why should the MCI introduce the three-tier policy, goes the orchestrated protest. There is no denying the fact that faculty is the fulcrum on which its credibility has been built.

Abolishing the additional professor’s post and providing for a new equation smacks of double standards and singling out those employed with NIMS, goes another school of thought. In normal and hitherto applicable norms, it would take at least 12 years to become a professor at NIMS.

However, as per the revised directive, one can achieve the envied position within five years of joining. This is quite contrary to MCI’s ruling that it would recognise a person as a teacher only after the individual puts in at least eight years of teaching experience. For one who is well-connected, the arithmetic becomes even more of a joke.

Unless rectified sooner than later, this could lead to brain drain with NIMS losing out on some potential talent while the corporate hospitals, ever eager with handsome baits, stand to gain. The corporate culture influenced hospital administration is stoic that it is abiding by the MCI directives, while the NIMS faculty association members contradict with their assertion that they are never taken into confidence during decision-making exercises that impacts their relevance.

Taken as a larger picture, it indeed appears so, if one goes by the classic instance of the elevation of Dr L Narendranath. If NIMS (in the red to the tune of Rs three crore annually) follows the MCI guidelines wherein a Director should have five years’ experience as a Professor/Head of a Department, then the incumbent Director should be removed first and foremost. He is neither a Professor nor Head of a Department.

Media has, time and again, found fault at the random manner appointments and promotions have been effected even as merit took a backseat. Looking back, the institute’s founding was exuberant. It was a Centre of Excellence for providing medical care, educational and research facilities of the most exalted order as befitting a super-specialty hospital.

The conceptualization of NIMS and its immense resourcefulness inspired the establishment of similar premier institutions in other parts of the country. The avowed principle was in the multipurpose utility value as they could serve as hospitals and educational institutions with thrust on research. Unfortunately, governmental support for NIMS was divided because of changes in political polarisations.

Its reputation was getting eroded because of the whims and fancies of people occupying the corridors of power and enjoying self-manifested sweeping controlling powers. Rampant corruption involving some high-profile administrators, who called the shot, completes the vicious circle.

The faculty has urged the State Government to actively enter the picture, order the stoppage of the likely introduction of the ill-fetched three-tier system and call for a dialogue involving the stakeholders to resolve the issue, once and for all. Therein lies the answer to the vexed problem because of which patients are bearing the brunt for no fault of theirs.