India is facing a severe shortage of anaesthesia practitioners

The shortage of qualified anaesthesiologists in India is estimated to be around 6,000.

According to President of Indian Society Anaesthesiologists Dr B Radhakrishnan estimated the shortage of anaesthesiologists in India to be around 6,000. “There is a severe shortage of anaesthesia practitioners in rural, tribal and hilly regions of the country, where nearly 60 per cent of the country’s population resides”, he said.

Speaking at the 54th annual national conference of Indian Society of Anaesthesiologists at Mysore near here, he said the Government of India claims a shortage of nearly 6,000 anaesthesiologists and reports that only 30 per cent of the country’s population has satisfactory access to proper anaesthesia services of which 80 per cent are urban beneficiaries.

To overcome the severe shortage of anaesthesia practitioners in rural, hilly and tribal regions of the country, Radhakrishnan urged the Government to make rural employment for a short period mandatory to new graduates. The Government could also consider recalling anaesthesiologists practicing elsewhere, besides giving rural area facing shortage of anaesthesia practitioners to the care of a major corporate or collegiate hospital.

But he decried the Government’s ill-conceived move to start an eighteen-week-long short- term training programme in anaesthesiology for medical graduates in service. “Inspite of our continued protests, the Government of India, for reasons known only to them, have started the short term training programme for medical graduates in service so as to employ them as anaesthesia providers for obstetric emergencies under the pretext that they are being trained as resuscitators”, he lamented.

Describing the short-term course as an “unethical move”, Radhakrishnan said Indian Society of Anaesthesiologists was not against training per se. “But, the training should be of sufficient duration to gather the basic skills required for an anaesthesia provider”, he said adding that the Society was moving the court against the Government over the issue.

The Indian Society of Anaesthesiologists is also focusing on providing adequate training in trauma care and disaster management. “Non-availability of organized drill in civilian sector in the country to salvage human life when exposed to mass trauma, had compelled ISA to start training programme on disaster management”, he said adding that Mangalore had been chosen as their nodal area of training. “Soon, we will be started improvised courses with the help of agencies concerned in traffic planning, aviation, railway, transport of explosives and coast protection force”, he said.

Dr Radhakrishnan also made out a case for introduction of quality proven ambulatory anaesthesia services in the country. Dr Radhakrishnan felt that anaesthesiology need not be confined to the corridors of operating rooms. Anaesthesiologists should concentrate on areas of pain management, trauma care and intensive care.