The Nepal Medical Association (NMA), the umbrella organization of doctors, has clarified that OPD services cannot be operated on Sundays. The association has stated that the arrangement cannot be implemented due to lack of manpower in hospitals.

After the government implemented the arrangement of giving two consecutive public holidays on Saturdays and Sundays, hospitals also decided to close OPD services. At the same time, the Ministry of Health and Population had instructed to operate OPD services on Sundays as well without disrupting the flow of services. It had said that OPD services would not be closed in any province, but the association issued a statement stating that the arrangement could not be implemented due to lack of manpower in hospitals. Doctors and health workers are providing 24-hour services including on-call, ward rounds, emergency services in addition to their regular duty from 9 am to 5 pm, according to the NM. In such a situation, the association has clarified in a statement that there is a risk of affecting the quality of service when additional workload is added. Considering the possibility that the new leave system published in the gazette as per the decision of the Council of Ministers may affect the health service, the ministry had urged hospitals to operate OPDs on Sundays as well, according to the workload and available manpower. In addition, it had also directed that one day off other than Saturday be given for employee management or, if that is not possible, to provide substitute leave. However, the association has stated that this system is not practical, stating that substitute leave has not been implemented in the past due to legal complications. In addition, it has stated that when different hospitals have different days off, it will create confusion for service recipients and will have to face inconvenience and will seriously affect service delivery.

Even though it has been decided to give two days off a week citing fuel shortage, the Nepal Medical Association has stated that it is extremely impractical to increase OPD hours in health institutions and waste fuel further.

The association has also warned that if such a decision is implemented without managing adequate manpower in the health sector, the service system itself will be affected. Demanding that the ministry reconsider its decision, the NMA has also stated in a statement that otherwise doctors and health workers will be forced to engage in a struggle and the ministry itself will be responsible for it.