Patna: The state health department has constituted a six-member committee to frame a new policy barring govt doctors from private practice, in line with the CM’s Saat Nischay-3 programme. The panel will consult key stakeholders and submit recommendations to guide incentives for rural postings and measures to strengthen public health services.State health secretary Lokesh Kumar Singh on Wednesday said that the committee would present its concerns, recommendations, and examples of provisions adopted in other states to aid in policy formulation. As per an order issued by special secretary Himanshu Sharma, a policy is to be framed for the implementation of Saat Nischay’s Sulabh Swastha–Surakshit Jeevan component. The initiative aims to strengthen healthcare services in remote rural areas by introducing incentives for govt doctors posted there and enforcing a ban on their private practice.
The order dated Jan 27 states that the six-member committee will be headed by Dr Rekha Jha, director-in-chief (nursing and disease control) of Bihar Health Services and superintendent of Patna Medical College and Hospital. Other members include the principal of Nalanda Medical College Hospital (NMCH), Bihar Health Services Association president Dr K K Mani, its general secretary Dr Rohit Kumar, and Dr Bibhuti Prassan Sinha, professor and head of the ophthalmology department at Indira Gandhi Institute of Medical Sciences (IGIMS).After the cabinet cleared Saat Nischay-3 programme, CM Nitish Kumar, during his Samriddhi Yatra earlier this month, announced that govt doctors would no longer be allowed to engage in private practice. He said the move was aimed at strengthening govt health facilities, particularly in rural areas, and ensuring doctors’ availability there.
