Chandigarh: The Punjab Cabinet, led by Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann, has approved the empanelment of 300 specialist doctors across 12 key specialities, marking a significant step to strengthen secondary healthcare services in the state. The decision was taken during a Council of Ministers meeting held in Chandigarh on Friday. Also Read:Punjab Introduces Rs 20 lakh Bond Policy for MBBS, BDS AdmissionsSpeaking to Punjab Newsline, spokesperson of the Chief Minister’s Office said that the Cabinet also gave nod to empanel 300 specialist doctors across 12 key specialities, including Medicine, Paediatrics, Psychiatry, Dermatology, Chest & TB, Surgery, Gynaecology, Orthopaedics, Ophthalmology, ENT, and Anaesthesiology across Government health facilities. This step will significantly augment specialist availability and improve the quality of secondary healthcare delivery for the people of Punjab. The empanelment process will be conducted through Civil Surgeons at the district level, and empanelled doctors will receive fees per patient for services such as OPD consultations, IPD care, emergency duties, and major and minor surgeries and procedures.The move comes at a time when Punjab’s public health system is facing a persistent shortage of specialist doctors, a challenge that has deepened over recent years.Also Read: Punjab to hire retired doctors amid specialist shortageMedical Dialogues had previously reported that, amidst an ongoing crisis in finding fresh talent for government services, despite a rising shortage in key medical specialities, the Punjab health department has decided to redeploy retired specialists on a contractual basis. For years, the state’s public health system has faced a significant scarcity of experts in areas such as gynaecology, anaesthesia, orthopaedics, and radiology, and the latest step reflects the widening gap between healthcare needs and the limited number of younger doctors opting for public-sector roles. To address the shortage, the state has announced 88 consultant openings, including 20 in paediatrics, 19 each in gynaecology and general medicine, 11 in anaesthesia, 10 in general surgery, five in radiodiagnosis, and four in psychiatry.
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