Search

Since the 1990s, health sector reforms are changing the ways in which services are delivered and financed in public sector hospitals, which is also altering the workforce organisation. Casualisation has crept in among the support staff. This not only influences the social consciousness, value system of the workers, and working conditions but also has a significant impact on the quality of care. With the selective outsourcing of non-clinical services, private contractors are delegating the responsibility of employing support staff. Thus, in a scenario of contracting out of services and increasing informalisation of jobs, this article delineates the relation between the nature of non-clinical service contracts and the organisation of the casual support staffs in a public sector hospital of Kolkata. It analyses the nature of service contracts, the working conditions of workers, and the job profile for providing non-clinical services. On the basis of this analysis, it tries to highlight the impact of contracting out of services on the staff members, their wages, and patient care. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]