NBMCH surprise visit

TT, Siliguri, Feb. 27: A three-member team of the Medical Council of India paid a surprise visit to North Bengal Medical College and Hospital here today, two months after it had sought a compliance report from the hospital on augmentation of infrastructure and teaching faculty.

NBMCH sources are considering this the final visit of MCI for determining whether the hospital should be granted additional 50 MBBS seats for the 2015-2016 session starting in July.

"The team came for a compliance verification assessment. Two visits have taken place in the past one year and we feel this is probably the last visit. After this, they will take a final call on granting 50 MBBS seats to NBMCH," a source said.

The MCI had granted additional 50 MBBS seats in 2013 and slashed those in April 2014. In July, the seats were restored on the condition that the hospital would fulfil all MCI stipulations in six months. The NBMCH initially had 100 MBBS seats.

Today, when the MCI team reached NBMCH at 9.15am, the hospital officials and staff were caught off guard.

"In the previous two visits, the physical verification was conducted in the second half so doctors who were out of station had enough time to reach NBMCH by train or flight. This time, the team visited the wards and college only for an hour in the morning and sat for physical verification,"said an NBMCH official.

"At that time, around 75 doctors were not present in the hospital and had not signed the attendance register and this meant 30 percent absentees. The MCI gives utmost importance to attendance of teaching faculties. The MCI team members accept around five per cent absenteeism but 30 per cent is not acceptable to them," he added.