Bhubaneswar: As many as 203 Assistant Professors today joined Odisha Medical Education Service. An orientation for new recruits was organized at the convention centre in Lok Seva Bhawan.
Joining the programme on a virtual platform, Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik advised the new assistant professors to follow the 5T initiative of the government and try to bring smiles to patients and their close family members.
Congratulating the new recruits, the CM said, “We must always remember that our success does not belong solely to us. It belongs to society. Our success is a contribution to our society. It’s our moral and ethical responsibility to give back to society and bring smiles to the face of people. In your case, there can be no better reward than a smile on the face of a mother when her ailing child is cured. This is the real satisfaction in your job.”
Speaking on 5T initiative of his government, he said, “All of you might be aware of our 5T Initiative, where the application of components like Transparency, Technology, Teamwork, and Time lead to Transformation. This will be a key principle throughout your career.”
Welcoming the new recruits, Patnaik said that recruitment of such a large number of Assistant Professors at one go will boost health education and improve the healthcare service bringing satisfaction to people.
He further said, we have always believed strongly in ‘Sustha Odisha, Sukhi Odisha’. For us, ‘Every Life matters’. It has been the fundamental principle of our governance in providing healthcare facilities to the people of Odisha.
The State Government is committed to providing universal access to quality healthcare services and bringing down the out-of-pocket expenses of the people.
The size of the budget of the Health Department is increasing over the years. The budget estimate in healthcare has almost doubled to over Rs 12,000 crore in this financial year since 2019-20. It is more than six percent of the State Plan the CM added.
Speaking on the occasion Chief Secretary Suresh Chandra Mohapatra said that the Chief Minister has directed to fill up all posts of medical officers and professors in all government health facilities. The state is providing cashless health service to over 70 thousand patients every month and spending Rs 70 crore per month, he added.
Sharing their experiences, three new Asst Professors Dr Manoja Bhuyan, Dr Bandana Mohapatra, and Dr Gopal Nayak praised the recruitment system saying that it’s absolutely fair and transparent. It will definitely improve the quality of health education and healthcare.
Interacting with the new professors, 5T Secretary VK Pandian advised them to follow Mo Sarkar. Explaining the tenets of Mo Sarkar, he said, as they have come through a transparent system, similarly, they should also see that the people who come to them are treated respectably and not harassed.
Sharing an anecdote, the 5T Secretary said that for a long time, the state was stuck with only three medical colleges, and new government medical colleges could not come up due to a lack of teachers.
One day, the Chief Minister decided that Odisha cannot wait for more for health education. The state has to go for medical education in a big way. Today there are 11 medical colleges in the State. And some more in the pipeline.
Health & FW Secretary Shalini Pandit gave the welcome address and Director of Medical Education offered the vote of thanks.
