Indian pediatrician attacked by masked intruders
By Minivan News | August 15th, 2010 | Category: News in Brief | 3 comments
An Indian pediatrician working at Kudahuvadhoo Hospital in Dhaal Atoll was stabbed in his home by a group of masked men, according to a report in Haveeru.According to Hospital Manager Ahmed Nashid, the attack occurred on Saturday night 10 minutes after the doctor arrived home from the hospital, when the group forced in his door. The doctor was stabbed in the arm and leg when he was unable to give the men any money.
“The doctor said his money was deposited in the bank,” Nashid told Haveeru.
Three suspects have been arrested in connection with the matter, Sub Inspector of Police Ahmed Shiyam told the newspaper.
http://minivannews.com/society/expat-doctors-deserting-maldives-5021
Expat doctors deserting Maldives
By JJ Robinson | November 23rd, 2009 | Category: Society | No Comments » Expatriate doctors are deserting the Maldives because of poor facilities and uncertainty over their pay, according to a doctor working at Indira Gandhi Memorial Hospital (IGMH).“We’ve lost five expat doctors in the internal medicine department in the last four months,” said Dr Ibrahim Shiham. “Only one has been replaced, and from an island so not a new recruit.”
Foreign medical staff are vital to the country’s health services and comprise 85 per cent of the country’s doctors, according to Shiham, most of whom come from India with some from Nepal and Pakistan.
Many are showing reluctance to renew their contracts, Shiham claimed, because the latest round of cuts to government salaries have added to the uncertainty that followed the efforts to standardise civil servant renumeration in January.
“What actually happened was a lot of pay scales were streamlined, and doctors’ basic salary, including allowances, was ultimately down 30 to 40 per cent. So what [the government] did was invent another allowance to take it to the original break-even level. But the extra allowance has no legal standing, and in theory doctor’s salaries got a major decrease.”
With their salaries “propped up and not in the rulebook”, many expatriate doctors “started talking about leaving and looking for other opportunities,” according to Shiham.
“People who’ve been working [in IGMH] for 14-15 years have begun leaving in the last four months,” he added, when their contracts come up for renewal – something he says was rare in the past. “They realised that once they sign the contract there’s not much they can do [if the allowance is withdrawn].”
Deputy Director of the Health Ministry, Abdul Samad Abdul Rahman, said three specialists and six medical officers had left the Maldives in the last two months, and that replacements were declining offers because of the lower wages.
So, there we are again. This is the real situation out here.
