‘Come To My Clinic’ Patients Allege Bhopal Govt Doctors Redirect Them For Private Consultations

Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh): Patients visiting government hospitals for treatment in Bhopal say they are often asked to continue consultations at doctors’ private clinics, where they are told they can be examined in greater detail.

The allegation comes as several government doctors continue private consultations after duty hours, with some patients claiming that they are specifically directed to these clinics despite first approaching the government hospital.

Free Press found that some government medical college doctors are also seeing patients at private facilities after their government duty hours.

Doctors not adhering to the rules

Assistant professor of anaesthesiology and pain medicine at Gandhi Medical College (GMC) and Hamidia Hospital, Dr Jaideep Singh, and his wife, Dr Pallavi Singh, an obstetrician and gynaecologist at GMC, are associated with International Hospital, a unit of JDS Medical and Allied Services.

Dr Jaideep Singh said that even when doctors operate from their homes, there can be a need to see patients living nearby, particularly in emergencies. He said patients need access to specialists close to their homes.

Dr Ashish Gohiya, professor and orthopaedic surgeon at GMC, also sees patients at his private clinic and visits Suditi Hospital at Lalghati after 5 pm. When contacted, his assistant said patients wanting to meet him should visit the clinic.

Dr Raghvendra Singh Meena, associate professor in the department of cardiology at GMC, runs a clinic at Jawahar Chowk.

During a visit, Free Press was told at a clinic that doctor sees patients there in the morning, goes to GMC and then visits another clinic before returning to his Jawahar Chowk clinic in the evening.

What patients said?

Yogesh Soni, who approached an orthopaedic surgeon after an accident, said this has happened to him several times. “I came here after meeting with an accident.

Generally, the doctor advises me to come to his clinic, saying he will check me more properly there. This has happened many times,” he said.

Vivek Mewada, who was due to undergo a procedure involving insertion of a rod in his leg, said he came to see the doctor at the government facility. “I came to show my leg to Gohiya ji.

He sees patients at GMC and then at the hospital in Bairagarh. I was treated there and a wrong rod was inserted,” he alleged.

‘Rules allow practice after duty hours’

Dr Rakesh Malviya, president of Medical Teachers’ Association, said the rules for private practice were different earlier but were later merged, allowing medical college faculty to work elsewhere after their government duty hours.

He said 3,500 doctors work in medical colleges across MP and many clinical faculty members practise in nearby areas. Doctors opting for private practice have to forgo the 20% non-practising allowance, he said.

Govt working on stricter policy

Principal secretary of health and medical education Sukh Veer Singh said the government was working on a stricter policy regarding private practice by government doctors.