Kozhikode Govt Medical College Cardiology Unit Severely Undermanned

Only eight of the sanctioned fourteen permanent cardiology doctors are currently on the rolls at Government Medical College Hospital, Kozhikode, leaving the department severely understaffed. The shortfall persists as one of the eight doctors has been posted on a working arrangement to the Government Medical College Hospital, Wayanad, and the remaining vacancies are filled by Doctorate of Medicine (DM) trainees who serve a one‑year bond before leaving. Senior staff warn that the trainees lack the ten‑years continuous echo‑room experience needed for complex diagnoses, forcing senior doctors on operation‑theatre duty to be called in for difficult cases. The department, which has posts for one Professor, three Associate Professors and ten Assistant Professors, still operates with the old staffing pattern while patient numbers have risen sharply; two Professor posts were recently shifted to other colleges. About 600 patients visit the cardiology out‑patient section each day and last year the unit performed over 5,500 procedures, including 980 angioplasties. Up to ten heart‑attack patients are moved daily from casualty to the cardiology ICU, where primary angioplasty surgeries run round the clock in two cath labs. Authorities have repeatedly alerted the government and invited applications for Assistant Professor posts, but many junior doctors avoid the roles due to low entry‑level salaries.

Context

The shortage reflects a broader trend of staffing gaps in public hospitals where limited funding and unattractive pay deter qualified doctors, worsening access to critical cardiac care for the region's growing patient load.