The Delhi High Court has sharply criticized the Delhi government for its failure to recruit sufficient numbers of qualified doctors and staff for the city’s hospitals. The bench, comprising Justice Prathiba M Singh and Justice Manmeet Pritam Singh Arora, voiced concerns over the lack of adequate personnel which has rendered valuable medical equipment unused.
“There are no technicians running these equipments,” the Court lamented, expressing dissatisfaction with the report submitted on this issue. The judges noted that the hospitals face significant challenges in hiring necessary personnel due to the absence of a consistent human resources policy by the Delhi Government. “Judges will come, judges will go, but the hospitals have to function,” they asserted.
This ongoing case, a suo motu initiative by the Court, involves continuous oversight of healthcare service delivery in Delhi’s government hospitals. Previously, on August 7, the Court was taken aback by revelations that 400 ventilators and 910 oxygen concentrators were not being utilized at Guru Teg Bahadur (GTB) Hospital. Consequently, the Court directed the Secretary of the Department of Health and Family Welfare to convene a meeting focusing on staffing for equipment operation.
In a subsequent hearing, the Court expressed dissatisfaction with the lack of progress since the August 13 meeting, noting, “It does not appear that after the meeting had taken place, any recruitment has happened.” The Court has now instructed the Secretary of Health to organize another meeting with each hospital to address recruitment needs. The directive emphasized a centralized approach rather than piecemeal, local, contractual hiring.
The Court underscored the necessity of prioritizing staffing concerns over equipment issues, conveying, “First we have to focus on the staff, then we have to focus on the equipment. Otherwise, it is not going to work,” as stated by Justice Singh.
Another pressing matter discussed was the availability of Intensive Care Unit (ICU) beds and the public’s awareness of their availability. The Court recognized a shortage of ICU beds, even in major hospitals. In response, the Delhi government’s standing counsel, Sameer Vashisht, informed the Court about a toll-free helpline number, 102, established for ICU bed availability inquiries.
However, when a government officer tested the helpline during the hearing, the call went unanswered. This prompted the Court to request details on the number of operators available to attend to such calls. It was revealed that 30 lines and operators cater to approximately 2,200 daily calls. The Court deemed this insufficient, stressing the need for more operators, “There are only 30 lines? Itna nahi ho payega (this won’t be enough). Delhi is 3.5 crores. This is not sufficient. Imagine emergency me log phone kare jaa rahe hain and phone hi nahi mil raha (Imagine if someone calls in an emergency and no one picks up the phone).”
The Court ordered, “If the lines need to be increased and operators also, feedback shall be given to the Secretary, Health and Family Welfare Department. Let a status report be filed in this regard.” Additionally, the Delhi government’s counsel noted the appointment of a referral coordinator to assist with patient transfers between government hospitals. The Court recommended that each hospital should have at least three coordinators, stating, “One referral coordinator is not enough. There need to be at least three referral coordinators.”
