The Confederation of Private Healthcare Association has requested for sufficient time to implement the system by which the nurses employed by private hospitals across the State will receive their salaries through a bank. This comes in the wake of a directive issued by the Labour Department, making it mandatory for private hospitals to provide the nurses with their salaries through banks.
The confederation is an umbrella body of six organisations including the Qualified Private Medical Practitioners and Hospitals’ Association, Kerala Private Hospital Association, the Catholic Hospital Association of India, the Christian Medical Association of India, Kerala Voluntary Health Services and the Association of Advanced Specialty Healthcare Institutions.
Speaking at a press conference here on Wednesday, Federation chairperson M.C. Cyriac said that more time would be required for implementing the directive in order to complete the necessary formalities.
He added that the increased minimum wages that have been proposed by the Minister for Labour would increase the existing burden that was shouldered by small private hospitals, especially those situated in rural areas. The revenues that are being generated by these hospitals generally varied to a large extent as they mainly depended upon the number of persons who visited such hospitals seeking medical attention. The functioning of these hospitals must be seen in the different light as compared to large hospitals.
Dr. Cyriac also criticised the State Government for not having taken the managements of private hospitals into confidence while arriving at decisions during the recent spate of demonstrations that were taken out by nurses. By such actions, the service rendered towards ensuring the welfare of the society by private hospitals in the State has been neglected, he said.
He, however, admitted that the nurses’ struggle for greater benefits was not unreasonable due the fact that they have worked tirelessly with utmost dedication for providing relief to the ailing.
