Solution to Private Medical Collages in Sri Lanka

Solution To SAITM Problem

I do have a silver bullet to solve this problem. The government doctors want to limit professionals to improve their earning capacity, but do it in the guise of love for the poor public.

The government or the private sector do not have a proper response to it.

The problem started by allowing public sector doctors to do private practice, because government was unable to increase their salaries – because swelled government service other professionals also demand higher salaries.

Now doctors are a wealthy lot welding lot of power professionally and financially. It is difficult for the government to handle them.

The solution is to stop government doctors doing private practice. Also listen to their argument of protecting poor patients, and allow only doctors from government universities to enter into public service.

Current doctors who does private practice while in government service will need to take a decision either government service or private practice.

The doctors who come out of private universities and foreign universities can enter to private hospitals. The government doctors also can enter into private hospitals just after passing their degrees but before their internships. In future all doctors who get internships and higher education, FRCS, MD etc. through government funds and scholarships should be bound to do government service for a number of years depending on the funds utilized for them.

If there is a shortage of doctors in private hospitals foreign doctors can be employed.

Another suggestion is for the government to also have a private channeling service – I think this was the practice before. This will compete with private sector. But doctors will not get an income depending on the number of patients. But, specialists can be given enhanced allowances. For patients who are unable to afford private channeling should be channeled through a government hospital doctor to channeling specialists – this is the practice of public health in other countries.

By making these changes we can look after our doctors who toiled a lot, competing in public examinations, entering into public universities with lot of hardships in achieving their degrees.