Women doctors: Financial cost of social hang-ups

Around Rs2.5 million is spent by the government on one medical student’s five-year MBBS degree.

KARACHI:

Every year thousands of women become doctors, but how much does the country benefit from them? Apparently, not much.

Research undertaken by the Sindh Health Department on five medical colleges shows that a total of 5,036 female students were enrolled in public sector colleges from the years 2005 – 2010, but only around half of them, 2,518 students, were practising doctors.

Not only does this have a high social cost, but also a very high economic cost.  According to the provincial health department, an average of about Rs500,000 is spent by the government on a student every year, which sums up to Rs2.5 million for a five-year degree.

In the larger picture this means that 2,518 non-practicing medical students drain public funds worth Rs6.29 billion, giving no benefit to society in return.

But in a merit-based system, there is little that can be done about this. Women, being comparatively higher achievers, vastly surpass the number of men admitted to public sector medical colleges.

The statistics compiled by the Sindh Health Department include data from the Dow Medical College, Sindh Medical College, Liaquat University of Medical Sciences, Shaheed Benazir Bhutto University (formerly Chandka Medical College) and Ghulam Muhammad Maher Medical College, Sukkur. Information from a women’s medical institution, Peoples Medical College, Nawabshah was also included.

“This [dearth of qualified doctors] is a huge problem for us,” said a senior member of the administration at the National Institute of Child Health (NICH). “Young doctors aspiring to be paediatricians come in but leave shortly. As a result we are left in the lurch without enough staff to run the hospital’s functions smoothly.”

According to the principal of a public sector university who requested anonymity, almost 65% of female medical students do not end up practicing. Worse, nearly 20 to 25% enrol in medical colleges as their families see it as a chance for better prospects.

The issue dates back to the Supreme Court verdict on college and university seats being awarded on open merit, throwing away the earlier quota system. Some doctors and administrators, however, feel that reverting to the quota system may help resolve this problem. “Previously it was a 30 [women] to 70 [men] quota,” said a senior medical college administrator. “If nothing else, perhaps a 50-50 quota can be implemented,” he said requesting not to be named.

Another suggestion is that a hefty penalty be set for non-practising doctors, a professor at a teaching hospital said.  “This will either encourage students to pursue their careers or discourage them from occupying seats which do not help society in any way. This is especially true for women.” Another solution suggested is making medical colleges only for men such as those only for women.

The pinch of not having enough women doctors in the field was first felt after the 2005 earthquake when many women refused to go to the area. A similar problem was experienced during the floods in 2010 and this year, an administrator added.

Dow Medical College

Male 63,  Female 267

Sindh Medical College

Male 66,  Female 264

Liaquat University Medical and health Sciences, Jamshoro (LUMHS)

Male 116,  Female 222

Shaheed Benazir University (formerly Chandka Medical College)

Male 121,  Female 125

Ghulam Muhammad Maher College

Male 44,  Female 55

Peoples Medical College for Women, Nawabshah

Male -- , Female 193

Total

410    1,126

 2005

Dow Medical College

Male 90,   Female 21

Sindh Medical College

Male 59,   Female 238

Liaquat University Medical and health Sciences, Jamshoro (LUMHS)

Male 23,   Female 197

Shaheed Benazir University (formerly Chandka Medical College)

Male 68,    Female 126

Ghulam Muhammad Maher College

Male 46,   Female 44

Peoples Medical College for Women, Nawabshah

Male --,    Female 167

Total

553    926

2006/7

Dow Medical College

Male 93,   Female 207

Sindh Medical College

Male 64,   Female 236

Liaquat University Medical and health Sciences, Jamshoro (LUMHS)

Male 225,   Female 241

Shaheed Benazir University (formerly Chandka Medical College)

Male 140,    Female 110

Ghulam Muhammad Maher College

Male 46,    Female 44

Peoples Medical College for Women, Nawabshah

Male --,    Female 192

Total

568      1,030

2007/8

Dow Medical College

Male 119,   Female 208

Sindh Medical College

Male 83,   Female 217

Liaquat University Medical and health Sciences, Jamshoro (LUMHS)

Male 178,    Female 176

Shaheed Benazir University (formerly Chandka Medical College)

Male 135,    Female 108

Ghulam Muhammad Maher College

Male 51,    Female 49

Peoples Medical College for Women, Nawabshah

Male --,    Female 188

Total

539      946

2008/9

Dow Medical College

Male --,    Female 238

Sindh Medical College

Male 68,     Female 230

Liaquat University Medical and health Sciences, Jamshoro (LUMHS)

Male 37,      Female 208

Shaheed Benazir University (formerly Chandka Medical College)

Male 109,    Female --

Ghulam Muhammad Maher College

Male 43,     Female 57

Peoples Medical College for Women, Nawabshah

Male --,    Female 173

Total

429     1,008

Published in The Express Tribune, January 2^nd,  2012.