Hospital closure hits thousands

KATHMANDU, JAN 20 -

• 400 hospitals shut across country

• IoM Dean Dr Sharma refuses to quit

• NMA moots scaling up stir

Outpatient departments in hospitals and nursing homes across the country remained shut on Sunday, in solidarity with the indefinite fast of Dr Govinda KC, who has sought immediate removal of the incumbent dean of the Institute of Medicine (IoM) and some crucial reforms to depoliticise the governing body.

Nepal Medical Association (NMA), which jumped in support of Dr KC’s demands, resorted to the severe measure of shutting down essential medical services from Sunday after the government appeared non-committal in fulfilling the demands even as the fasting doctor’s health reached a critical stage. Dr KC is a senior orthopedic at the TU Teaching Hospital.

Sunday’s medical strike imposed on over 400 hospitals across the country deprived thousands of patients from availing health services. The hospitals provide services to an estimated 150,000 patients on a daily basis.

As Dr KC’s hunger strike reached ninth day on Sunday with no concrete results at hand yet, the NMA is mulling scaling up its agitation.

In the face of mounting pressure, incumbent IoM Dean Dr Sashi Sharma has, however, refused to give in. Only on Saturday, Dr Sharma turned down Interim Election Government Chairman Khil Raj Regmi’s call to resign, saying that he would not follow any ad-hoc orders but only the due process of law.

As Dr Sharma refused to budge, Minister of Education Madhav Poudel on Sunday directed the Tribhuvan University to withdraw Sharma’s appointment as the dean of IoM. “As a pro-chancellor of the institute, I’ve asked the TU office bearers to scrap the appointment,” said Minister Poudel.

However, with the TU Regulation-1992 preventing its Executive Council from scrapping the appointment, only an amendment to the law could pave the way for removing Dr Sharma. Such an amendment will have to be endorsed by the TU Senate, the highest body of the university.

“Dr Sharma’s resignation is the only solution to the current crisis,” said Dr Sarad Onta, a public health professor. “The entire medical fraternity is agitating. There is no point in sticking to a position if that does not help run the office.” The agitating doctors argue that Dr Sharma should resign as he has been implicated in a number of corruption cases, which are currently under investigation at the CIAA.

Officials at TU find themselves at loss. “We are in dilemma. We can appoint a dean but we do not have the right to remove him/her.

Dr Sharma remains firm on his stand not to step down,” said TU Registrar Chandra Mani Poudel.

Narayan Khanal, legal advisor to the university, said the Supreme Court has established the precedence that the office bearers can revoke the dean’s appointment only if he or she is found involved in criminal offences or proved mentally retarded.

“There are five cases where the apex court has reinstated the deans after the executive relieved them from their responsibilities,” said Khanal. In one instance, Tej Bahadur KC, a former dean of the Institute of Forestry, was reinstated to his office after the TU Council gave him marching orders in 1995.  Khanal said any professor or associate professor can be appointed as the dean as per the prevailing law of the university. Meanwhile, doctors attending Dr KC said his health condition is potentially life threatening. Dr KC has been on an indefinite strike demanding the government reinstate former dean Dr Prakash Sayami, stop issuing affiliations to new medical colleges, end political meddling in the IoM, take action against TU office bearers, and develop the IoM into an independent university, among others. Asking the government to immediately address the demands raised by Dr KC, CPN-Maoist issued a statement expressing their solidarity with the fasting doctor.

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