Kottayam: A severe shortage of doctors at Government Medical College and Hospital, Kottayam, has begun to take a serious toll on patient care, with even emergency surgeries now being postponed.

Recently, two major surgeries had to be rescheduled because the doctors assigned to them were required to attend a medical board meeting related to the Motor Accident Claims Tribunal (MACT). One of the postponed surgeries involved a patient whose condition could worsen without timely intervention. The delay was attributed to the acute shortage in the neurosurgery department.

The lack of doctors is also hindering the settlement of MACT cases. Disability certificates, vital for claim approvals, can only be issued after assessment by a medical board. However, contractual doctors are not permitted to serve on these boards, compounding the delays. In fact, the MACT court recently expressed dissatisfaction over the unavailability of doctors.

Kottayam Medical College handles MACT-related assessments for courts across Kottayam, Alappuzha, Pathanamthitta, Ernakulam, Idukki, and Kollam. These cases often require evaluation by specialists in orthopaedics, neurosurgery, general surgery, ENT, and ophthalmology.

Adding to the crisis is the recruitment process, which is tightly regulated by the Medical Commission. This has left several departments struggling with a critical shortage of specialists.