People In The Northern Province Castes Their Votes Today(21) For The First Time In 25 Years

The voting of  the First Elections held in   de-merged Northern Province  after 25 years to elect 36 members to Northern Provincial Council was concluded this evening with a large number of voter turn out.residents in Northern Province have voted in large numbers since this morning at the 850 polling stations situated in the province to elect members for the northern provincial for a five year term.

The voting for electing members from Jaffna,Kilinochchi,Mannar,Mulativu and Vavuniya Districts for the provincial council was began at 7 a.m today and concluded at 4 p.m  .the voting was held peacefully amid tight security .around 715,000 residents are eligible for vote in this elections and 2000 local and international observers including observers of SAARC and Commonwealth countries are engaged in election monitoring activities according to Elections Department.

The Elections Department has says that 65%, of registered voters in Vavuniya District,68% in Kilinochchi District,70% in Mannar District  71% in Mulativu and 60% in Jaffna District have castes  their votes since this morning.

This is the first time that people in the  North have been voted to elect a post war administration in their province which was earlier  under the control of LTTE .the province was freed from LTTE after it was militarily defeated by the Sri Lankan Army in 2009.

Although Provincial Council elections for the central and north western provinces  too been held today both local and international communities are eying on  the northern provincial council elections as people their voted for the first time in 25 years.

MICU Of The Kalubowila Teaching Hospital Has Been Crippled Due To Transferring Of Seven doctors

The Medical Intensive Care Unit (MICU) of the Kalubowila Teaching Hospital has been crippled since last week due to the transferring of seven of the senior medical officers attached there to other hospitals without any replacement according to hospital sources.

Due to this situation new admissions to the MICU has been suspended the sources added.as the health ministry secretary Dr.Nihal Jayathilake has instructed all medical administrators of government hospitals through a circular to implement annual doctors transfers with or without replacements medical administrators too transferred some senior medical officers attach to special units in hospitals without awaiting for the replacements sources added.

As a result patients getting treatment from government hospitals are suffering heavily government doctors said.

Supreme Court Has Issued An Interim Order To Prevent Printing Pictorial Warnings In Cigarette Packets

The Supreme Court has today(20) issued an interim order preventing the implementation of printing pictorial warnings on  the cigarette packets covering 80% of the packet space.The Ministry Of Health has issued a gazette notification in August 2012 stating the need to carry pictorial warnings in front of cigarette packets on deadly diseases caused by smoking .

However the Tobacco Companies operating in Sri Lanka have filed a case in Supreme Court against the gazette notification by stating that the companies do not have enough time to produce their opinion on the decision and carrying pictorial warnings on cigarette packets covering 80% of the space is not practical enough.

The  three Judge Panel of the Supreme Court who were heard this case today compromising Judges Eva Wanasundera,Sathya Hettige and Salim Mershook have issued the interim order preventing  implementing the  Gazette Notification regarding carrying pictorial warnings until 22nd January 2014.the court proceeding scheduled to  be resumed on that day.

The Minister Of Health has been recently received an international award from World Health Organization for signing the said gazette notification to implement pictorial warnings in cigarette packets.

The Buddhist Clergy too urged the government last week to implement the said gazette notification without any delay.

Due To The Delay Of Receiving Employment In Government Hospitals 295 PSM Graduates Found Other Jobs

Due to the long delay of getting employment in Government Hospitals 295 out of the 605 Professions Supplementary To Medicine(PSM) Graduates who were  graduated from State Universities have either went abroad or found jobs in Private Sector according to Secretary of Joint Council Of Professions Supplementary To Medicine(JCPSM) Mr.Saman Jayasekera.

Only last Tuesday(17) JCPSM has received the assurance from Health Ministry Secretary Dr.Nihal Jayathilake that all unemployed PSM Graduates will be recruit to Government Hospitals within next two weeks ,but now government hospitals will received only the service of 310 PSM Graduates out of 605 as others are now employed in private sector Mr.Jayasekera has said.these PSM Graduates have awaited government employment since mid of 2012 and even Cabinet has approved a Cabinet Paper last February for recruiting all 605 PSM graduates to government hospitals he has stressed.

However due to the Health Ministry's delay of recruiting them nearly half of these graduates went for other employment the JCPSM Secretary has further said.

These PSM Graduates received their degrees from Ruhuna,Jaffna,Peradeniya and Sri Jayawardenapura State Universities and government has spent around Rs.300,000 per PSM graduate for their education according to Health Ministry sources.they have received education in the fields of pharmacology,radiography,medical laboratory services and physiotherapy sources added.

Now the shortage of Professions Of Supplementary To Medicine in government hospitals have exceeds 1000 according to the reports.

DCD And Botulinum Bacteria Scare Among Imported Milk Powder Products To Sri Lanka Still There-GMOA

Health Ministry Officials should have explained  to the public that how can they ruled out  DCD Chemical is not contained in   imported milk powder products  available at the market Government Medical Officers Association(GMOA) has said.No matter what health offcials are saying DCD and Chlostredium Botulinum Bacteria  contained Milk Powder products are still selling in the market  the media spokesman of GMOA Dr.Naveen De Soyza has said.

As experts have predicted DCD chemical is not only entered to the Milk Powder  through adding it to the grass that cow's  are eating but also through the adding  that chemical to the milk powder after importing it Dr.Soyza has revealed." Foreign Milk Powder Manufacturers are adding DCD Chemical to their milk powder products just to show that there's more  protein in their products after the  protein level has been reduced due to the removing of Whey Protein Compound in Cow's Milk " he has stressed.

So due to this how can Health Ministry Officials can hide the truth by stating that imported Milk Powder Products arrived Sri Lanka after 01st of June are not contained with DCD Chemical Dr.Soyza has said.

Some Ministry Officials have shown that they are  ten times more active when they have announced all Whey Protein contained imported Milk Powder Products available in the  local market have not contained Botulinum Bacteria than the time they taken the decision to ban issuing of whey protein contained milk powder to the  market he has further added.

Health Ministry should have  act in more responsible way when dealing with contaminated food issues as it's directly linked to the consumer dr.soyza said.

GMOA Declared This Week As A Week On Implementing Annual Doctors Transfers

Government Medical Officers Association(GMOA) has declared this week as a " week on implementing  annual transfers of government hospital doctors".GMOA has already informed hospital administrators to implement doctors transfers during 16th to 23rd of September .

Those hospital administrators who are not able to release the doctors who are in annual  transfers list withing the given week will face disciplinary action the media spokesman of GMOA Dr.Naveen De Soyza has said today(17)government medical officers association has already requested ministry of health to take disciplinary action against  medical administrators who are failing to act accordingly he has added.

According to this year's annual transfer list of government doctors 3179 doctors are due to transfer dr.soyza has said."some medical administrators are purposely not transferring the additional doctors of their hospitals who have received transfer orders  by citing that there are  no  replacements for them .but it is the duty of the administrators to get suitable replacements for their  transferred doctors prior to transfers "dr.soyza  has stressed.

Four Suspects Were Arrested Over Selling 10 Gloves Boxes Belongs To Cancer Hospital

Three Minor Staff workers  attach to Maharagama Cancer Hospital and a funeral parlor owner were taken in to custody and imprisoned  by the police yesterday(15) after they found guilty on selling/buying 10 gloves boxes belongs to the hospital.these gloves boxes were sold to a funeral parlor in Maharagama Area  according to hospital authorities.

The accused minor staff workers sold 10 gloves boxes belongs to Cancer Hospital to the funeral parlor  for Rs.1000 per box it has been revealed.one gloves box they have sold contained 100 gloves  and they have received Rs.10,000 through selling these according to police.after the suspects were produced before the Nugegoda Magistrate Court today the additional magistrate Mrs.Aruni Atygala has ordered to remand them unill 01st of October.

Meanwhile Ministry Of Health has requested  CID to investigate this matter.