Health plan gives docs a headache

Parents have since then found themselves hunting in vain for that friendly physician.

Said a mother of two students of Bangurnagar Vidya Bhawan, Goregaon, "I have been running around for the past two days trying to get a doctor to fill up the health card. The family physician is not keen on filling up the card. Then there are doctors who are willing to do so for a price." She faced a similar crisis last year, when one doctor charged twenty rupees for simply weighing each of her children.

Again, once the health card is filled up, there is no follow-up on health deficiencies from the school, she complained.

But Lata Navandar, principal of the Bangurnagar Vidya Bhawan, caught in the bureaucratic grindstone, throws up her hands in sheer helplessness. "I received the form only in the evening of November 19. And as per the circular, the check-up should be completed by November 22 and the completed tally sheets to be sent to the convenor by November 25. That’s too short a time. Besides, we were given only one copy of the form, and 700-odd copies had to be done to circulate among the primary school children. What can one do at so short a notice? Being an unaided school, we cannot invite doctors to check the students and pay their bills. We wish we were informed a little earlier." Last year, the BMC had issued no directions to her for a follow-up on the issue.

Dr S M Pophale, one of the besieged practitioners, exclaimed: "How can a doctor check two hundred children and complete their forms in so short a time!"

Also, the fact that the health cards ask for detailed appraisals do not help matters. Says Pophale, "There is a slot in the form for checking up the veins of a child. I wonder what that is supposed to imply. Then again, pathological tests take time. I do not have a lab in my clinic. So I have no option but to ask the children about the frequency and colour of their bowel movements and record the same in the form! This is hardly any method for medical tests; the diagnosis is far from accurate."

Another doctor, Dr Ramkumar Murthi, complains about the time limit for submitting the forms. "One needs at least fifteen minutes per child. Though we decided earlier not to fill up the forms, we have now been forced to change our stance as the children are pulled up for not submitting their health cards."

He suggests that ideally the schools should have invited a couple of doctors for the check-ups. "We don’t mind working on an honorary basis. The schools should also ensure that the cards are counter checked and signed by the respective family physician," he observed.

"This is all but a sham, and we are set to take it up with the respective authorities," said Dr Pophale, on behalf of his colleagues.

When contacted by Express Newsline, about their responsibility in the scheme, BMC’s executive health officer, Dr Alka S Karande said, "Ask the state health department about the project." However, the director of state health services, Dr S R Salunke pointed out that the onus of the implementation and the follow-up of the scheme lies with the respective municipal corporations.