“By allowing patients to book slots through a mobile OTP, the hospital is cutting out the need for physical presence just to secure an appointment. When a patient can confirm an OPD visit from home, the incentive to pay someone to stand in line or “manage” access disappears. This shift is critical because most petty corruption in public hospitals happens before medical care even begins.
The integration of DDSSY and ABHA cards is another blow to informal practices. Paper-based systems are vulnerable by design. Files can be delayed, misplaced, or selectively prioritised. Each manual step introduces discretion, and discretion is where corruption thrives.”
The decision to introduce online booking for OPD services at Goa Medical College from February 4 is not just an administrative tweak. It is a direct challenge to a long-standing informal economy that has thrived on confusion, queues, and desperation. For years, agents and middlemen have operated openly in and around GMC, feeding off systemic inefficiencies. A digital, time-bound OPD booking system has the potential to disrupt this network at its roots.
GMC’s OPDs have traditionally functioned on uncertainty. Patients arrive before sunrise, unsure if they will get a token or be seen by a doctor. This unpredictability creates anxiety, especially among the elderly, the sick, and those travelling from distant villages. Agents step into this vacuum, offering guaranteed access for a price. Their business model depends entirely on the absence of a reliable system. Online booking introduces certainty where there was none, sharply reducing the space in which such agents operate.
By allowing patients to book slots through a mobile OTP, the hospital is cutting out the need for physical presence just to secure an appointment. When a patient can confirm an OPD visit from home, the incentive to pay someone to stand in line or “manage” access disappears. This shift is critical because most petty corruption in public hospitals happens before medical care even begins.
The integration of DDSSY and ABHA cards is another blow to informal practices. Paper-based systems are vulnerable by design. Files can be delayed, misplaced, or selectively prioritised. Each manual step introduces discretion, and discretion is where corruption thrives. Automatic retrieval of patient details reduces human interference and makes it harder to manipulate records or fast-track certain cases unofficially.
The fixed, one-time registration fee also addresses a common source of exploitation. Patients are often unclear about what they are supposed to pay and to whom. This confusion is routinely exploited by agents who collect inflated “service charges” under the guise of official fees. Clearly defined charges of 100 rupees for Indian nationals and 250 rupees for foreign patients bring transparency and reduce the scope for overcharging.
Slot management rules further limit misuse. Opening bookings for only the first seven days and closing later bookings at 5 pm the previous day makes bulk blocking of appointments more difficult. Agents often book or acquire multiple slots early, creating artificial scarcity and then selling access. Identity-linked, time-bound bookings make such practices riskier and less profitable.
Beyond curbing agents, the reform has an important equity dimension. Those most harmed by corruption are usually those with the least power. Senior citizens, daily wage workers, and patients from rural areas often cannot afford repeated hospital visits or under-the-table payments. A predictable online system restores fairness by ensuring that access is based on registration, not influence.
However, the success of this initiative will depend on enforcement. If walk-ins are quietly allowed through back doors, or if staff make “adjustments” outside the system, agents will adapt and survive. GMC must back the technology with strict on-ground discipline, visible signage, and clear instructions for patients. Help desks should assist users without turning into unofficial brokerage points.
Digital systems can also create new exclusions if not handled carefully. Patients unfamiliar with smartphones or online forms may still seek help from intermediaries. The hospital must pre-empt this by offering official support counters and public awareness campaigns, particularly during the initial rollout.
At its core, this reform acknowledges a hard truth. Corruption flourishes not only because of bad actors, but because of bad systems. When access is unclear and processes are slow, middlemen become inevitable. By simplifying OPD access and reducing human discretion, Goa Medical College is addressing the conditions that allow corruption to exist.
If implemented with consistency and political will, online OPD booking can do more than shorten queues. It can dismantle an entire shadow economy built around public healthcare. That would be a meaningful step toward restoring trust in one of the state’s most important institutions.
