Medical services were badly disrupted as the five-day long strike of resident doctors in protest against the rape and murder of a junior resident doctor in Kolkata Medical College continued on Friday as well. The Indian Medical Association (IMA) has also announced a strike in all government and private hospitals across the country on Saturday.
Doctors will be on strike in hospitals too
Doctors will be on strike from 6 am on Saturday to 6 am on Sunday. During this time, an appeal has been made to keep OPD and regular surgeries closed in hospitals. Apart from small private hospitals and nursing homes, doctors will also be on strike in corporate hospitals. IMA has demanded from the central government to declare hospitals as safe zones and make security arrangements like airports.
In a press conference held at the IMA headquarters on Friday, association president Dr. RV Ashokan said that the police have arrested one accused, while the post-mortem report of the victim shows that many people were involved in the crime. Despite being put on a 36-hour long duty, there was no rest room in the hospital.
Demand to declare hospitals as safe zones
He said that the association met Union Health Minister JP Nadda last Tuesday and demanded that hospitals be declared safe zones. There should be adequate number of security personnel deployed and security check protocols should be followed. The working hours of resident doctors in hospitals should be fixed. Apart from this, a demand has also been made to make a Central Healthcare Protection Act for the safety of doctors and health workers, but no concrete assurance has been received from the ministry in this regard.
The Union Health Minister has said that he will consider it. It is necessary to make this law for the safety of doctors and health workers. IMA Action Committee Chairman Dr. Vinay Agarwal said that doctors never want to go on strike, but if there are incidents of rape of a female doctor and violence against doctors, we will not remain silent.
Emergency service also stopped, patients’ problems increased
The problems of patients are increasing due to the strike of doctors in many states of the country including Bengal, Bihar, Jharkhand and Delhi. OPD remained closed in government hospitals of Punjab. Doctors and nursing staff did not work except emergency services. Resident doctors in Rishikesh AIIMS in Uttarakhand are on strike for the last four days. PG doctors in Doon Medical College also boycotted work on Friday. Pharmacist Association has also extended its support to the movement.
In Himachal Pradesh, patients are facing problems due to the strike going on in medical colleges for the last three days. In Bihar, emergency services of NMCH, Patna, DMCH, Darbhanga and SKMCH, Muzaffarpur were shut down on Thursday afternoon.
OPD and testing facilities remained closed in AIIMS Patna
Health services were affected in the medical college hospitals of Bhagalpur and Purnia. Patients got angry due to the stoppage of treatment at IGIMS in Sheikhpura, Patna and blocked Nehru Path (Bailey Road) for about an hour. OPD and testing facilities remained closed in AIIMS Patna, but emergency-trauma services continued. Ayush doctors took out a candle march in the evening in front of the Government Ayurvedic College in Patna.