In a significant development, the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in Delhi has made amendments in the existing recruitment rules for the post of medical superintendent (MS) which will now allow a doctor to be sent on deputation to AIIMS for the post.
Earlier, the recruitment was done through a direct mode where a faculty member is appointed for the medical superintendent post. However, with the new amendment, the premier institute will be able to hire for the position from other institutes as well on deputation.
The new order said that the MS will be appointed “on deputation” for a period of up to five years, initially for three years and then be extended for two years.
Read More: Delhi L-G takes ‘serious note’ of lapses in DDA apartments
As per the order issued by Dr Sanjay Kumar Arya, Professor and in-charge of Faculty Cell, a candidate for the MS post will need to have 14 years of teaching or research experience after obtaining the postgraduate qualification in the specialty or the Master’s Degree in Hospital Administration, of which at least seven years should be in the administration of a major hospital in a senior position.
According to faculty members and doctors at the hospital, this comes as a surprise as earlier it was AIIMS doctors who used to be sent to other institutes to take charge on deputation.
“Dr M Srinivas is one of them who was deputed to ESIC Medical College and Hospital in Hyderabad in 2016 before coming back to AIIMS as the director. He was the professor in the Department of Pediatric Surgery here,” said a senior doctor at the institute.
A few senior doctors criticised the move saying that it would increase the chances of favouritism and added that the due procedure has not been followed as amendments for recruitment to such crucial positions need the approval of the governing body (GB) and institute body (IB) of AIIMS.
“The move is set to reduce the autonomy of the institute as it will increase the chances of outside control,” said a doctor from the institute.
However, some of the doctors said that it all depends on the person who is appointed as the next MS. If he or she comes on deputation there will be more transparency, they said.
“An outsider is expected to be fair in dealing with the day-to-day affairs of the institute and other responsibilities,” said another doctor.
When contacted, AIIMS spokesperson was not available for a response.
