The Hostel Fiasco

My residents were quite upset. “Sir, this is about our hostel accommodation. They have put us in rooms at the hospital for animals.” “Animals?” I was surprised. “What is wrong with the quarters in campus?” “Sir, you know they have pulled down the new RMO quarters because the building was structurally unsafe. Plus there are a number of extra residents this year.” “Yes, I recall” I said. I had not read anywhere that they had pulled up the architect and the builder who had built the building which had to be pulled down so early after being built. Nor had they pulled up the engineer who had certified it OK after construction. They probably preferred to leave skeletons in cupboards alone. “Sir, the rooms are like animal cages!” said one of them. I wanted to say they could expect nothing else in a hospital for animals, but refrained from saying so because they were quite upset. “Huh?” I said. “Yes, sir. And they have given rooms in campus to non-clinical residents.” That was too much. I thought the hospital was for giving healthcare to patients, and doctors involved with that should be in campus rather than those dissecting dead bodies or performing experiments on frogs and dogs. “I will speak to the chairman of the committee for RMOs’ room allotment” I said. I knew that fellow very well. We shall call him Professor of RMOs’ Room Supply or in short Professor of RRS. I rang him up and he promised to get back to me. I rang him again today, and he came to see me with his deputies and the list of distribution. I called one of the complainants and asked him to go through the list with me. “These rooms are given to residents in Anatomy and Physiology” I pointed out. “They can have rooms outside campus while clinical residents can have those rooms.” “They are office bearers of RMOs’ union. They have to be given rooms because they get the people to repair lifts and geysers if they stop functioning.” said Professor of RRS. “But they have their office to work from in day time. Geysers and lifts are repaired in day time, not at night. And there are geysers and lifts in the quarters outside the hospital too. Are they immune to malfunction and don’t need repairs?” I asked. “Um…. Well! It was agreed by competent authority and passed in RMOs' union meeting” said the professor. “Who is the competent authority?” “It was the previous Director.” “It sounds like the management is scared of the union and strikes of RMOs ordered by the union” I said. “The previous Director used to tell us to do this or that so as not to anger the union.” The Professor had no comment to offer. “Sir, they have given two rooms in two different hostels to one person.” said the complainant. I checked the chart and so did the committee members. It was indeed so. So they called that fellow. “I have not done this” he said. “Someone has done this fraud in my name.” So they asked him to make that statement in written form. “Why have you given rooms in campus to these nonclinical people” I asked pointing to a few names. “They are couples, married to each other” they explained. “We have provision to give married couples rooms in campus.” I was stunned. “That sounds ridiculous” I managed to say. “You are giving marital bliss priority over patient care? Can these couples not have marital bliss in quarters away from the campus?” “Sir, even if we give them rooms outside the campus, it will not make any difference to these boys. Couples are given rooms on floors meant for female residents. By getting them out, we can't give those rooms to these male complainants. Women residents will object.” I was stunned even more. “You mean women residents don't mind married men on their floor, but they mind unmarried ones?” I asked. “Usually it is unmarried men who cause troubles to women, not married men” Professor of RRS said. “Wives of these married men will control them and protect the other women residents on the floor.” This was sounding like a comic show. “By the way, have these couples submitted copies of their marriage certificates?” I asked. “No. They just say they are married and we trust them” the professor said. He seemed to have a wonderful knowledge of law. I turned to my resident and told him, “you find a woman resident and get married to her now! You will get a room here. After residency you can always divorce each other. That is what they do to gain entry into USA.” My sarcasm was not lost on them. My resident grinned while the others ignored me. “As a policy, we have given rooms to all women residents in the campus and males have been sent outside” a committee member said. “It is unsafe for women to walk on the road at night.” Those statements sounded sexist. They also reflected badly on the law and order situation in the city. I hope the police commissioner and the home minister don't learn what this fellow was saying. “Suppose someone mugs him?” I asked. “It is not only women who are assaulted.” “If you want a room in campus, we can send you another hospital in the city by changing your registration to that institute. A person from there will come here in your place” offered the Professor of RRS to the complainant. “I don't want to go to any other institute” said the poor fellow. I have come here on my merit. That institute is horrible. There are no patients to treat there.” “There is no provision to do such a thing anyway” I told the professor. “and you have no authority to offer such an arrangement.” “But why don't you stay away from the campus?” he asked the resident. “I have to attend emergency calls at all times. How will I attend night calls?” “You can walk to the hospital. The place is not very far. Or we will make arrangements for an ambulance to bring you here and take you back” offered the professor. “Sir, it takes two hours to get an ambulance going anywhere. How will it bring him here in a few minutes? Besides I don't think you have the authority to make such an arrangement yourself. Did you not read in the newspaper that there is an ambulance lying around unused in brand new state because people have not been appointed to work in it? If they could not get it working for healthcare, how will they get it working to ferry resident doctors between quarters and the hospital?” I said. “Sir, they have given a room to someone who is not working in our hospital. She is in another institute.” I was aghast at what our complainant had pointed out. The committee members checked out that name and claimed it was as per the letter sent by me to them, giving a list of all residents who would require hostel accommodation. So we took out our file and showed them that her name was not in the list. Then they thought about it and said “the institute she is working in will not give her accommodation when she goes on exam leave. Since she is our student, we give her a room in anticipation.” “You don't give rooms to people who are working here at the moment, and give to people who will be without accommodation after a few months, and when they won't be in our institute even then? Does it sound sensible?” I said. “We always do that” they said. The whole thing was sounding like a grossly mismanaged thing, or there were undercurrents that are not worth mentioning without solid proof. Professor of RRS kept repeating the same things he had said changing the sequence, while the committee members kept silent. I knew there was no progress to be made. So I said, “I know you have worked a lot on this issue. I have pointed out a number of errors and deficiencies in that work. There could be more of them. I suggest you go through the whole thing and rectify all errors. I further suggest you change those policies which are wrong. I am not arguing with you so that three of my residents get rooms in campus. I am fighting for correcting the wrongs in the system, for the benefit of all clinical residents in the institute. What you say is the policy may be looking very fine on paper, and may have the sanction of the highest authority. But if your conscience says otherwise, rectify it. If not, so be it. I cannot do anything further on this issue.” “We will do whatever is possible” the professor promised. The one hour heated discussion ended on that note.