TIMS failed to provide job assurance, say medical professionals

Hyderabad: Medical professionals who had applied for the posts of head nurses, staff nurses, and other medical staff at the Telangana Institute of Medical Sciences (TIMS) in Gachibowli, Hyderabad, staged a protest at the office of the directorate of medical education (DME) in Koti here on 6 July. They alleged that they were not told it was an outsourcing job and neither the TIMS administration nor the Gandhi Hospital could give them any assurance.

Candidates who were selected for the posts received an SMS asking them to report to TIMS for verification of certificates and other formalities. Around 600 candidates arrived at TIMS. However, they were told that only staff members required for TIMS would be selected and other candidates would have to work at Gandhi Hospital in COVID-19 wards.

When the candidates came to Gandhi Hospital, they were in for a shock as there was no such arrangement at the hospital. The hospital administration denied any such recruitment on an outsourcing basis.

“We are willing to work anywhere, even in COVID care wards, risking our lives. But the hospital administrations are not giving us any assurance about our jobs, salary, and health and other benefits. We have been told that we have to arrange for our own uniform and that we should start working from Tuesday morning,” said a candidate.

Another said that Gandhi Hospital officials informed them that they will only mark their attendance on working days but did not furnish any details about salary and date of payment for each month’s work. They were again told to go to the DME's office in Koti and meet the officials. “But nobody in the office knows what is happening and what the rules of recruitment are," the candidate said.

They also alleged that the government is unwilling to issue offer letters. “All of us work in different places. An offer letter is mandatory if we want to quit our current jobs,” one of them said. The candidates demanded the government issue offer letters to them and provide health cover.

TIMS was set to start treating COVID-19 patients from 29 June but on 4 July NewsMeter had reported that it was still recruiting staff.