Patiala, Dec. 28 -- After failing to recruit medical specialists for nearly three years, the Punjab government has decided to empanel private medical specialists to address the chronic shortage crippling the secondary healthcare services across the state. The move to engage private doctors has been taken against the backdrop of a severe shortage of specialists in government hospitals. No regular recruitment has been carried out in the state since 2022. Official data reveal that, out of the 2,098 sanctioned posts of medical specialists in Punjab, only 1,000 are currently filled, leaving nearly 50% of the positions vacant. In the notification issued on December 27, the department of health and family welfare has announced the need-based empanelment of as many as 300 specialists for the district hospitals (DHs) and sub-divisional hospitals (SDHs). "Online applications are invited from interested specialist doctors for empanelment at District Hospitals and Sub-Divisional Hospitals under the Department of Health and Family Welfare, Punjab," reads an order issued by the Punjab health department. The notification further said that the empanelment of specialist doctors will be limited to the disciplines of General Medicine, Paediatrics, Psychiatry, Dermatology, Chest and TB, General Surgery, Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Orthopaedics, Ophthalmology, ENT, Anaesthesiology, and Radiology. Senior health department officials, privy to the development, acknowledged that the shortage was severely affecting patient care in several districts. In some districts, there is reportedly only one specialist catering to the entire population. For example, in Patiala district, the health department has just one psychiatrist, while Ludhiana has only three general medicine specialists for the whole district. The situation has worsened over the years due to a high attrition rate with many doctors reportedly leaving government service citing excessive workload, low emoluments, lack of incentives and limited career progression. The official pleading anonymity added that, unlike regular appointments, the empanelment will be need-based and hospital-specific, with doctors being paid on a per-patient basis rather than a fixed salary. According to the terms and conditions of empanelment, specialists will be paid Rs.100 per patient for Out-patient Department (OPD) and In-Patient Department (IPD) services, Rs.3,500 for major surgeries or caesarean sections, Rs.1,000 for minor surgeries, Rs.500 for minor procedures, Rs.400 per ultrasound, Rs.1,500 per emergency call and Rs.2,000 for anaesthesia in major surgeries. A minimum assured patient load has also been fixed, with OPD ranging between 50 and 150 patients per day and IPD between 2 and 20 patients. The policy allows empanelled specialists to continue private practice at any other location, the official added. "However, unnecessary referrals of patients from government hospitals to private facilities have been strictly prohibited, with violations inviting cancellation of empanelment. The empanelled doctors will not be entitled to any additional allowances, perks or administrative duties, and the engagement will not be permanent," the official quoted above added. Empanelled doctors will be required to provide services for at least three hours a day at the assigned government facility, six days a week. Health department officials said districts had already been asked to widely circulate the advertisement among private specialists to ensure maximum participation. "The government hopes that the empanelment drive will provide immediate relief to overburdened hospitals and improve access to specialist care for patients, even as questions remain over the long delay in regular recruitment of specialists in the state," the official added. Principal secretary health Kumar Rahul couldn't be contacted for comments. Calls and texts to him remained unanswered. The Punjab Civil Medical Services Association (PCMSA) refrained from commenting on the state government's decision of empanelling private specialists but said that they have been informed that hiring of regular specialists through walk-in interviews will be competed in the coming days. "The government's prime focus should be on regular walk-in interviews for specialist doctors as it will serve as a sustainable solution to the acute specialist shortage in the State. We expect the government to wrap up the regular specialist hiring process within the next couple of months," Dr Akhil Sarin, state president, PCMSA, said....