Thiruvananthapuram | The KGMOA on Thursday welcomed the state government's plan to introduce 24x7 speciality services in district and general hospitals within six months, but said new posts were needed to implement it.

The organisation said implementing the scheme by redeploying existing doctors would affect the state's three-tier public healthcare system.

The Kerala Government Medical Officers' Association said the health department has around 800 vacant doctor posts, of which about 300 are in the speciality cadre.

There are 476 vacancies in the general cadre and 23 in the administrative cadre, it said.

Several district and general hospitals have only three or four specialist doctors in some departments. Their staffing cannot be compared with medical colleges, where departments may have around 100 doctors, comprising faculty, senior residents and junior residents, the organisation said.

Specialists on overnight emergency duty would also have to handle outpatient, inpatient and theatre duties during the day under an on-call system, which could affect doctors' health and patient safety, it said.

The organisation called for the immediate creation of new speciality posts and the appointment of postgraduate-qualified assistant surgeons to ensure proper shift and stay-duty arrangements.

It called for filling vacancies in primary and community health centres through the PSC, warning that shifting doctors to larger hospitals could leave rural areas without basic healthcare.

The KGMOA urged the government to strengthen emergency departments by increasing the number of casualty medical officers and introducing an effective triage system to prioritise critically ill patients.

It said the government had given written assurances to strengthen emergency services and had already issued a government order in this regard.

The doctors' body also sought action against doctors who obtained postgraduate qualifications under the service quota but were working in private institutions.

The KGMOA urged the government to discuss the scheme with the organisation and consider the practical difficulties faced by doctors and hospitals before taking a final decision.