A shocking incident took place in Hisar Civil Hospital where a doctor performed 44 surgeries despite not having completed his medical degree. Dr. Vijay, who was appointed as an eye surgeon, has not yet completed his postgraduate course because he hasn't passed the required exams. As a result, the Health Department has stopped him from performing any more surgeries.
Hisar Civil Hospital has a record of performing 1,000 surgeries annually. But, this year they have done only 71 surgeries in 11 months. The incident came into the limelight when there were no surgeries performed for 4 consecutive months.
Despite being underqualified, the Health Department appointed Dr Vijay as an eye surgeon according to the sources. Later, the deputy director of the National Programme for Control of Blindness (NPCB) stepped in and ordered that Dr. Vijay stop performing surgeries. However, by the time the order was carried out, Dr. Vijay had already carried out 44 eye operations.
Reason for appointing unqualified surgeon
The lack of qualified surgeons in the hospital led to this incident. At that point, three surgeons from the eye department resigned from the position and joined a private hospital leaving the hospital unstaffed. At that point to fill the vacancy, the department appointed DR Vijay as a surgeon who was still pursuing his postgraduate studies. He used to perform the surgeries under the supervision of senior eye doctor Dr Jyoti from the same hospital.
From April to July, Dr. Jyoti did 27 surgeries, and Dr. Vijay did 44. When Dr. Jyoti was promoted and moved, Dr. Vijay took over. Because of his unfinished qualifications, the NPCB stopped his surgeries. Dr Vijay is now on extended leave.
Chief Medical Officer of Hisar, Dr Sapna Gehlawat, confirmed that Dr Vijay has not yet completed his exams. A doctor from Agroha Medical College has already been appointed to manage outpatient services in the eye department. She further added with the approval of the state, after completing the degree Dr Vijay will be allowed to perform the surgeries.