Staff found sleeping at Mani Majra Civil hospital

Tribune News Service

Naina Mishra

Chandigarh, March 19

Staff found sleeping at a Chandigarh health facility during a surprise inspection in the wee hours has prompted Health Secretary Yashpal Garg to deduct their one-day salary.

Garg carried out a surprise inspection on the night intervening March 16 and 17 between 11.50 pm and 2.20 am to inspect various hospitals of the UT. Another surprise inspection was carried out at a Health and Wellness Centre (HWC) in Sector 8 here on March 17 morning.

During his visit to the Civil Hospital in Mani Majra between 11.55 pm and 12.30 am, Garg found general wards of the hospital with patients and some private rooms locked from inside. A security guard posted at the labour room was asked to get it opened, but she failed to do so after repeated knocks. The sweeper and the nursing officer were also found sleeping on the duty.

Garg has pointed out that locking the ward from inside would have been disastrous in case of any fire and the justification of avoiding theft for locking was not acceptable. It seemed a cover-up so that the staff could sleep while the room remained locked.

The Health Secretary has initiated action against the sweeper deployed at the Civil Hospital, Mani Majra. He wanted the sweeper to be immediately replaced from the outsourcing agency and his substitute should be preferably from the outsourced staff, who were deployed during the Covid wave but were subsequently disengaged later.

Garg ordered that one-day casual leave of regular officers or officials, who were found sleeping or came late, would be deducted.

An explanation has also been sought about locking the general ward from inside and staff found sleeping. The Director, Health Services, has been asked to give comments for appropriate action in the matter.

It has also been ordered to deduct one-day salary of those outsourced staff who were found sleeping or have been away from their duty point and came late. It has been decided that their performance would be closely monitored for the next three months.

The staff at the HWC, Sector 8, was not on time due to which six patients had to wait at the registration counter. An explanation has been sought from the in-charge of the HWC for non-punctuality of most of the staff.

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