No CMO for railway hospital

Four health units also have no medical officers

Madurai

Dakshin Railway Employees’ Union has raised concern over the absence of Chief Medical Officer at Railway Hospital in Madurai.

In a statement, its divisional secretary, R. Sankaranarayanan, said that the hospital was catering to 25,000 railway employees their families and pensioners.

However, for the last 10 months, the hospital did not have a CMO. “The role of CMO gains more significance under the COVID-19 pandemic situation as only the CMO can take important administrative decisions,” he said.

Similarly, four of the nine health units at various locations do not have medical officers for the past six months.

“Railway employees, their families in Palani, Dindigul, Karaikudi,Manamadurai, Mandapam, Virudhunagar, Tirunelveli, Thoothukudi and Shencottah, visit these health units for minor ailments. This set up has been in existence since the British era. These units are more beneficial for railway employees and pensioners, who suffer from chronic ailments like diabetes and hypertension. They get their medicines meant for every month there,” Mr. Sankaranarayanan said.

However, the units at Karaikudi, Thoothukudi, Tirunelveli and Shencottah do not have medical officers for six months.

Deputing medical officers from Madurai Railway hospital is not practically workable. This leads of additional work burden on the medical officers and the quality of service also suffers, he added.

The divisional administration should intervene and take efforts to post medical officers, at least on contract basis, on a war-footing, the statement said.