Health Minister suspends HOD at Coimbatore Medical College Hospital for irregular attendance

The Head of the Department of Cardiology at the Coimbatore Medical College Hospital (CMCH) was suspended by Minister for Health and Family Welfare Ma Subramanian on Monday, August 1, after he was found guilty of poor attendance and dereliction of duty. The CMCH campus was inspected by Ma Subramanian, Health Secretary Senthilkumar and District Collector of Coimbatore after a review meeting with the deans of all government medical college hospitals from across the state on Sunday, July 31.

It was during the inspection that the Health Minister discovered that the Head of the Cardiology department, Dr Munusamy, was frequently absent from work and had failed to turn up to work for several days. Officials had filed complaints against the doctor, who lives in Salem, for being irresponsible, reported TNIE.

The Minister checked the attendance record and found that the doctor had altered the record by marking a fake 'present' against himself in the book. Following this, the Minister suspended the doctor and ordered the concerned officials to instate department-oriented action, said the report by TNIE.

The Dean of CMCH, Dr A Nirmala, said that several warnings with regards to his absence from work went unheeded. TNIE reported that the doctor was caught red-handed by the Minister and, therefore, suspended.