Today I heard some of my colleagues talk about the recent
criticism and accusations made against Maldivian doctors that they refuse to work in the field in the islands. I believe it is only fair to put these accusations and criticism in proper perspective.
As per an agreement, signed by
most Maldivian medical students at the time we receive scholarships for medical studies abroad, we are required to work an
unspecified but reasonable length of time in the islands once we return after completing our training. Unfortunately in recent years, several Maldivian medical graduates were allowed
exemption from this already agreed obligation while others were
virtually forced to adhere to it. This had created a sense of inequality among the graduates and prompted some to refuse to carry out their obligations unless equality is restored.
There is no denying that our countrymen, women and children need our graduates to serve them in earnest. We are indeed duty bound on moral and ethical grounds to serve them. Many of the graduates have done that, in perhaps the harshest clinical settings they themselves have ever had to practice under. It is therefore
deeply concerning and
highly unfortunate that Maldivian doctors as a whole have been accused of being insensitive to the peoples needs.
I do understand and share the feelings of those who have served in the islands when they hear of their colleagues' refusal to do the same. It is even more
disgusting when rules are bent and broken in favour of allowing certain members of the medical fraternity to be made exempt from such rules. If rules are to be applied, they have to be applied across the board. No exceptions and no exemptions. We must create such a situation of equality.
Indeed, if one would be so diligent to look into the matter, one would find instances where a number of the graduates were
never asked to serve in the islands. Surprisingly some were
held back from doing so even upon request. In this kind of situation, the accusations are
misleading and
demeaning.
The current practice of sending graduates fresh from medical colleges to work
unsupervised, on their own, in a
poor resource setting is also
questionable. Most of these doctors, although full and complete graduates from medical schools, have little or no experience in handling cases entirely on their own, especially in high pressure and resource constrained settings as those found at most health centers in the country. It is perhaps better to allow them to be nurtured and groomed under proper supervision for a reasonable length of time at a tertiary hospital or regional hospital before being posted to practice medicine on their own.
It is, in my
personal opinion, paramount that we
revise and review the current practices of posting Maldivian doctors to the Health Centers and Regional Hospital, if we are to realistically tackle the medical staff shortage situation in the islands. The current system is
flawed and outdated. The exceptions and exemptions of days gone by have made it an inequitable system that is
frowned upon by Maldivian medical graduates.
I support and am in favour of posting Maldivian doctors to the islands to serve our people. For this to work, we must make the system
fair for everyone. For the doctors posted in the islands to deliver reasonable quality of services they must be nurtured and groomed well prior to their postings. The places they are posted to must also be
resourced-sufficiently to allow for the doctor to serve to his abilities.