To alleviate the deficit of doctors, chief minister Mamata Banerjee today created a post called ‘practitioner sister’ attached with different government hospitals and medical colleges who can also examine patients and treat them similar to registered doctors.

The announcement came after Miss Banerjee held a meeting with transport and housing minister Firhad Hakim, health secretary NS Nigam, Dr Manimoy Bandopadhyay, director of the Institute of Post Graduate Medical Education & Research (IPGME&R) as well SSKM Medical College Hospital today at the hospital’s Academy Building.

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“A post ‘practitioner sisters’ will be created in the health department. Senior nurses will also be promoted to the post considering their performance. They will be allowed to give medical treatment to patients like practitioner doctors. The health department will prepare guidelines in this regard. We have decided to take such a move considering the shortfall in the number of doctors and it will also reduce the workload of junior doctors,” Miss Banerjee told reporters.

“We have already trained quacks in rural Bengal so that they could provide basic medical treatments to patients in primary health centres. I will also hold another meeting on 16 September with principals of five medical colleges in the city at SSKM to review the healthcare system in these teaching hospitals,” she said.

Miss Banerjee has already announced that she would hold a meeting with health department officials twice a month at SSKM hospital to review the state of healthcare services in Bengal. She has also announced several other packages for doctors, nurses, and medical students.

The state housing department will earmark a plot of 10 acres in the city where government doctors and nurses will build residential buildings. “We have given land to IAS, IPS and journalists to set up their housings. Now we have decided to give 10 acres of land for doctors and nurses free of cost. They will build their buildings at their own costs.

Firhad Hakim will arrange the plot,” she said. A G+10 storied building will also, come upon Lee Road where medical students’ hostels will be built, she announced.