Lok Sabha Question No. 2299 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2021-12-10
Subject: Shortage of Doctors
Ministry: HEALTH AND FAMILY WELFARE
Asked by: Mohanbhai Kalyanji Kundariya, Dipsinh Shankarsinh Rathod, Riti Pathak

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF HEALTH AND FAMILY WELFARE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND FAMILY WELFARE

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 2299 TO BE ANSWERED ON THE 10 TH  DECEMBER, 2021

## SHORTAGE OF DOCTORS

## 2299 SHRI MOHANBHAI KALYANJI KUNDARIYA: SHRI DIPSINH SHANKARSINH RATHOD: SHRIMATI RITI PATHAK:

Will the Minister of HEALTH AND FAMILY WELFARE be pleased to state:

- (a) the details of existing doctor-patient ratio in the country;
- (b) whether this ratio is as per the parameters of World Health Organisation, if so, the details thereof and if not, the reasons therefor;
- (c) whether the Government has launched any health mission or chalked out any action plan to address the shortage of doctors and specialists at the ground levels and also reducing the burden on secondary and tertiary level hospitals; and
- (d) if so, the details and salient features of the scheme and if not, the reasons therefor?

## ANSWER THE MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF HEALTH AND FAMILY WELFARE

## (DR BHARATI PRAVIN PAWAR)

(a) to (d): As per information available, there are 13,01,319 allopathic doctors registered with the State Medical Councils and the National Medical Commission (NMC) as on November, 2021.  The  doctor-population  ratio  is  1:834  in  the  country  assuming  80%  availability  of registered allopathic doctors and 5.65 lakh AYUSH doctors.

Public  Health  and  Hospitals  is  a  State  Subject  and  all  the  administrative  and  personnel matters, including support for outsourcing or engagement of doctors, para-medical staff and technicians on  contractual  basis,  lies  with  the  respective  State/UT  Governments.  However, under National Health Mission (NHM), Government of India provides financial and technical support to States/UTs to strengthen their healthcare systems including support for recruitment of  doctors,  para-medical  staff  and  technicians  on  contractual  basis,  within  their  overall resource envelope.

Under  NHM,  support  is  also  provided  to  States/UTs  for  hard  area  allowance  to  specialist doctors for serving in rural and remote areas and for their residential quarters so that they find it  attractive  to  serve  in  public  health  facilities  in  such  areas.  Support  for  honorarium  to Gynecologists/ Emergency Obstetric Care (EmoC) trained, Pediatricians & Anesthetist/ Life Saving Anaesthesia Skills (LSAS) trained doctors is also provided to increase availability of specialists  for  conducting  Cesarean  Sections  in  rural  &  remote  area.  The  States  are  also encouraged to adopt flexible norms for engaging specialists at public health facilities. These include various mechanisms for 'contracting in' and 'contracting out' of specialist services, empanelling private medical facilities to provide requisite Specialists and other methods of engaging  specialists  outside  the  government  system  for  service  delivery  at  public  health facilities and the mechanism to include requests for these in the state Program Implementation Plans (PIP) under the National Health Mission.

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