Outpatient (OP) clinics, inpatient services and elective operations at the Government Medical College Hospital, Thiruvananthapuram, were partially affected on Tuesday as postgraduate resident doctors at the hospital went on a strike over the non-payment of the monthly stipend due to them.

The Thiruvananthapuram MCH unit of the Kerala Medical Postgraduates Association (KMPGA) had pointed out in the strike notice issued to the college Principal on Monday that the stipend for the month of April had not been credited despite repeated assurances. This has caused “severe disappointment as well as distress” to resident doctors, the KMPGA pointed out.

The postgraduate resident doctors declared that they would be boycotting all elective services—OP and ward duties, elective operation theatre services, academics and all non-emergency services—on Tuesday, and that they would strike indefinitely if they were not paid the stipend on time.

“There is a standing order issued by the Director of Medical Education that the PG residents should be paid the stipend before the fifth working day of every month. However, for the last six months, we have been paid this amount only by the middle of the month and often, only after we made several visits to the Principal’s office. Their excuse is that the delay happens because their administrative staff are being deputed for other governmental work. They should be making alternative arrangements as many of us are being put through financial distress because of this delay in payment,” a PG resident doctor said.

‘Administrative inefficiency’

Senior faculty at the MCH alleged that it was sheer administrative inefficiency that had led to the non-payment or delayed payment of stipend to the resident doctors.

At the end of every month, the attendance report for the month has to be forwarded by the heads of departments to the college office, which is verified and forwarded to the treasury, after which the stipend is credited to the account of the resident doctors.

“Our PG residents are the main workforce of the medical college, and most of them end up working much beyond their designated hours every week. Not paying them their stipend on schedule cannot be condoned at all because for most of them, this is their sole income. They have rent and other bills to pay, loans to be repaid and many have families too to support. It is quite shameful that the authorities have not been diligent enough to keep to the stipend payment schedule and avoid putting undue stress on the young medicos,” one of the faculty members said.

The PG resident doctors said that they expected the stipend to be credited to all of them by Wednesday at least.