Telangana’s top hospitals hit by senior faculty shortage due to transfer freeze

Tertiary hospitals in Telangana are facing a severe shortage of senior faculty as experienced doctors remain posted at peripheral health centres with minimal infrastructure. The Telangana Government Doctors Association has urged the State to lift the transfer ban to address the crisis

Hyderabad: The quality of medical education and patient care at Telangana’s State-run tertiary hospitals continues to suffer as senior faculty remain posted in remote health centres that lack adequate patient footfall and postgraduate (PG) medical students commensurate with their level of expertise.

Accomplished faculty, including professors, are assigned to healthcare facilities where there are neither PG students nor complex medical cases. For example, a senior professor of radiology—who could be more productive at Niloufer Hospital or Osmania General Hospital—is currently posted at a peripheral centre that lacks even basic diagnostic infrastructure like CT or MRI scans.

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Departments such as cardiology, radiology, general surgery, general medicine, and paediatrics are witnessing a similar issue. Many senior professors are stationed at locations where only primary healthcare services are required. Meanwhile, tertiary care centres like Gandhi Hospital, Osmania General Hospital, and Kakatiya Medical College—where high-end care is needed—are functioning without adequate senior faculty.

The misallocation of experienced faculty is severely affecting both medical education and patient outcomes, particularly at institutions with the largest number of PG medical seats in the State.

To address this, senior government doctors under the Telangana Government Doctors Association (TGDA) submitted a representation to Health Minister Damodar Rajanarasimha over a month ago, urging him to lift the ongoing ban on transfers.

“We will continue to remain in touch with health officials and the Health Minister to improve the current situation at tertiary hospitals. The hasty establishment of 25 additional government medical colleges has further exacerbated faculty shortages,” said Dr B Narahari, State President of TGDA.

In their appeal, doctors emphasized that sanctioned posts remain unfilled while qualified faculty await transfers from peripheral centres.

“Permitting transfers to existing vacancies would significantly improve staffing levels without creating any additional financial burden for the government,” they added.