Cabinet to Scrutinize Doctors’ Public Service Hours Amid Concerns Over Private Practice Time
The time some medical doctors employed at the Sir Lester Bird Medical Center spend on the job has come under scrutiny.
The government is of the view that some are not working their full hours despite receiving their full salaries.
The Cabinet of Antigua and Barbuda has raised the eyebrows expressing concerns that certain doctors prioritize private practice over their obligations at public facilities.
Prime Minister’s Chief of Staff Lionel Hurst told Reporters Thursday that while doctors are allowed to earn from private practice, there is an expectation that taxpayers’ funds be met with a fair return in public service.
“Without adequate supervision, some doctors tend to focus on private practice, but we are now moving toward closer monitoring of the hours they spend on hospital grounds,” he stated.
Hurst said doctors can still balance public and private commitments effectively.
“We know doctors can reduce private practice hours, increase their time at the hospital, and still earn substantially,” he said, signaling that stricter oversight is intended to ensure better alignment of doctors’ responsibilities and rewards.
In recent times medical practitioners, including heads of various departments at the hospital have opened their own practices promising to offer services complementary to what is offered at the SLBMC.
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