Skip to main content

Minister Thapa vents his anger at bureaucratic red tape

Health Minister Gagan Thapa has expressed discontent at bureaucratic red tape that has affected many of his programmes on the health sector reform. Taking to the social media on Wednesday, Minister Thapa commented that his efforts and vision to provide specialty care in each district hospital from February 12 had been delayed, what he believes, due to inconsiderate nature of the office bearers.
Minister Thapa was referring to his ambitious plan of catering speciality healthcare services in district hospitals. The ministry had collaborated with the National Academy of Health Sciences, Bir Hospital and Institute of Medicine to begin the specialty services in 13 district hospitals in Sarlahi, Dhading, Rolpa, Gorkha, Arghakhanchi, Udaypur, Dhankuta, Nawalparasi, Saptari, Mahendranagar, Dang, Nuwakot and Baglung. For all his plan to kick off the much-hyped programme, including a full-fledged emergency services, othropaedic and pediatric services from Sunday, no hospitals were able to provide the service.

According to the concept, the Kathmandu-based government hospitals will send their specialist and resident doctors to the districts and begin the services. “While we are too serious on our work, the other party who is tasked with delivering the health services must have belittled our initiative,” said Minister Thapa. “I am not bringing a populist programme that might be faced with scepticism from the bureaucracy. I am working to provide quality healthcare in each district and this is the fundamental mandate of my ministry. I am surprised officials have failed to meet my pace; either they are not willing to or they are not competent enough. “But this should stop and as a health minister I am committed to taking action against those who don’t deliver on my vision.”
To support the collaboration, the Ministry of Health has already begun a process to establish pre-fabricated operating theaters designs of which have been ready. It is set to invite bids soon. However, this is not the first time that Minister Thapa has rued on bureaucracy and how it has been creating hurdles on implementing many programmes. For instance, despite releasing over Rs500 million to procure drugs for free distribution in the districts, very few of them have purchased the medicines. In a similar statement in January 31, Thapa had said that despite earmarking enough amount, “many of the officials have been unable and unwilling to procure medicines.”
Even in a nutrition conference held in Pokhara on 13 January, where chief of public health offices across the country were summoned, Minister Thapa had warned that those officials who do not heed to his instructions will have to face dire consequences. The procurement of drugs expedited after the warning, yet the momentum slowed down. “People have every right to access quality health services and I am committed to delivering it through many innovative approaches,” said Thapa. “But without support from bureaucracy, we will reach nowhere and all our efforts might be useless.”

Manish Gautam
The Kathmandu Post
16/02/2017

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Bhattarai stresses on rebuilding Nepal-India ties

- Kamal Dev Bhattarai Former Prime Minister and Coordinator of Naya Shakti Nepal Baburam Bhattarai has said that there is a lack of ‘proper understanding’ in India about Nepal. Speaking to Post before concluding his visit to India on Tuesday, leader Bhattarai said mainly young generation of India has some flawed understanding about Nepal and bilateral relations between the two countries. The former prime minister maintained that there is a need of dialogue, debate and discussions to rebuild the bilateral relations in the change political context Nepal and India. Bhattarai made such remark after extensive discussions with Indian intellectual and policy makers during his seven-day stay in New Delhi.  Bhattarai underlined the need for building a bilateral relation between two countries at the top political levels. Bhattarai was of the view that there has been a huge change in the political scenario of both countries and bilateral relation should be rebuilt accordingly. He ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Elections to oppose regional politics: Chair Oli

CPN (UML) chair and former Prime Minister K P Sharma Oli has said that the upcoming elections will vehemently oppose and respond to the regional politics and forces involved in disharmonizing the social cohesion. Speaking in a program organized to extend thanks to the volunteers, artists and media for their presence and support shown during the party's Mechi-Mahakali Campaign (March 4-18), leader Oli said so. He added that the people will answer those forces by giving a majority seats to his party from upcoming elections. Leader Oli further shared that the party will launch more effective programme in Province No 2 in near future. He added that the Madhesi morcha showed apolitical behaviors against UML during the campaign being intolerable due to fear of ending their illusion against the constitution and UML if UML launched effective and harmonious programs in Tarai. In another context, chair Oli shared that the attorney general suggested the election commission to touch ...
Post a Comment
Read more

House panel has decided 3 % threshold provision

State Affairs Committee of the Parliament has decided to impose a threshold of three percent and at least one seat under the First-Past-the-Post electoral system to secure seats under the proportional representation system. The committee meeting on Wednesday took the decision to impose the threshold. Earlier, a sub committee formed by the committee decided to impose 3 percent threshold in the upcoming parliamentary election to become national political party. According to the subcommittee member Rameshwor Phuyal, the 27th meeting of the panel decided to provision three percent threshold after the rigorous discussion.  "Any political party must secure at least three percent seat under the Proportional Representation (PR) category and at least one seat under First-Past-the-Post category to become the national political party," said Phuyal.  He hailed the decision of the 11-member panel as historic. The sub-committee was failing to endorse the Bill Related to ...
Post a Comment
Read more