jordan pulse -

By Dr. Mohammad Hassan Al-Tarawneh, Specialist in Chest and Respiratory Diseases

The implementation of fingerprint attendance systems to track doctors' working hours has sparked debate in many healthcare institutions worldwide. While this system might appear effective in ensuring punctuality, its incompatibility with the nature of medical work presents significant challenges.

Reasons Fingerprint Systems Are Unsuitable for Doctors:

1. Dynamic Work Nature: Doctors’ work hours cannot be precisely scheduled due to emergencies and patients requiring continuous care, demanding flexible schedules.


2. Patient-Centred Focus: Critical cases and major surgeries may delay a doctor from clocking in, leading to unfair penalties.


3. Increased Stress: Fingerprint systems can add psychological pressure, negatively impacting doctors’ performance and efficiency.


4. Exceptional Circumstances: Situations like pandemics or major accidents require extended, uninterrupted work hours.


5. Flexible Work Environment: Creativity and innovation thrive in less restrictive environments, which fingerprint systems do not support.


6. Professional Accountability: Doctors are already governed by medical responsibility laws to ensure work quality, unlike other employees, making fingerprint systems unnecessary.


7. Work Mobility: Doctors often work on holidays, rotate between healthcare facilities, and travel, complicating fixed attendance tracking.


8. Health Risks: Doctors face exposure to infectious diseases during their work, a risk that should be accounted for.



Proposed Alternatives:

Rather than relying on rigid fingerprint systems, the following alternatives could better evaluate doctors’ performance and attendance:

1. Continuous Performance Evaluation: Assessing doctors based on care quality, patient satisfaction, and case numbers.


2. Flexible Scheduling: Allowing doctors to adjust their schedules according to patient and institutional needs.


3. Incentive Systems: Rewarding exceptional performance and dedication with incentives.


Applying fingerprint systems for doctors is an unfair and illogical measure that disregards the unique nature of their work. Instead, healthcare institutions should focus on creating supportive work environments and adopting fair, flexible evaluation mechanisms.