Medical specialists’ Association opposes TU interference with post intern appointments

Post intern appointments should be made on the basis of service exigencies and not according to the whims and fancies of any trade union, Association of Medical Specialists (AMS) said yesterday in a letter to health ministry Secretary Dr. S.H. Munasinghe.

AMS President, Dr. Lakkumar Fernando said that post-intern appointments were new appointments and not transfers and that the current practice of selective placement of medical officers based on their trade union affiliations had to be stopped. “Appointment of medical officers according to the service requirements and not according to their trade union affiliations is the only way to stop “maldistribution” of medical officers in our country. We strongly believe that the pressure exerted by the AMS has contributed to a greater extent for your good office to take this courageous step purely with the best interest of maintaining equitable distribution of medical officers and delivery of health care in our country,” he said.

Dr. Fernando said that while endorsing the health secretary’s decision in this regard, the AMS strongly believed that these placements should strictly be determined by service requirements. To make it more effective, recommendations of the administrative authorities in consultation with the consultants in the relevant institution should be given due attention.

“We are of the opinion that this gives a golden opportunity for key medical administrators to show the country that they stand for what is right with good intentions to serve the masses. Therefore, we write this letter to you not only to express our stand with regards to post-intern appointments but also to appreciate the current stand taken by the Secretary, Health and other ministry officials to solve this issue”, he said.

The Government Medical Officers Association (GMOA) has commenced a strike over the post-internship appointments that they claimed had been made by the ministry of health arbitrarily.