Siliguri MLA Rudranath Bhattacharya talks to doctor Parthapratim Pan (left) at the NBMCH on Wednesday. Picture by Kundan Yolmo

Siliguri, July 27: MLA Rudranath Bhattacharya today directed a doctor in an outpatients’ department of North Bengal Medical College and Hospital to remain present six days a week, though the latter tried to convince the legislator that he was the sole faculty in his department and couldn’t handle the OPD alone.

Dr Parthapratim Pan of the department of physical medicine and rehabilitation attends the OPD three days a week — on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays.

Pan told the MLA that he could not spend the entire time in the OPD — open from 10am to 2pm — as he had classes for MBBS and nursing students. The original strength of the department is two doctors, but one post is vacant at present.

Sources in the hospital said the timing of Pan’s OPD overlapped with his classes and that was why he could not treat patients on three days.

Bhattacharya, also the chairman of the state standing committee for health, was taking rounds of different OPDs to take stock of their functioning and to note patients’ grievances.

The moment the MLA entered the department of physical medicine and rehabilitation, he asked Pan: “I have only one question for you. Why are you present in the OPD only three days a week while it is managed by physiotherapists on the remaining three days?”

Pan hurriedly replied that he was the sole faculty in his department and had to teach his students and take extra classes for nursing students. “It is not possible for me to remain present in the OPD on all six days,” said the doctor.

Bhattacharya, who himself was a doctor at the NBMCH, told Pan to schedule his classes in a way that he could treat patients in the OPD all six days a week.

“The patients come to OPDs to get expert advice, not to visit the physiotherapists. You should remain present here on all six days and make arrangements to re-schedule your classes before and after OPD hours,” said the MLA.

The doctor retorted that it was the job of the higher authorities in state health department to increase the workforce at the hospital.

“Sir, you are aware of the problem in the department. We will be able to function in a full fledged manner if vacant posts of doctors are filled up in this department. It is the job of higher authorities like you in the state health department to fill in these posts,” said Pan.

However, Pan mellowed down when Bhattacharya sternly told him to remain present on all six days.

The sources said the rescheduling of classes would not be an easy task as it entailed a change in the teaching time of other doctors also.

Earlier during his round in the OPD of the department of medicine, Bhattacharya hauled up another doctor for arriving 90 minutes late. The doctor said he was taking a round of the indoor and was late in arriving.

The legislator was present at the hospital from 10.30am to 2pm and also went around the OPDs of male medicine, female medicine, urology, male surgical, gynaecological and paediatric departments.