Doctors’ On Nationwide Strike Today, Demand Law For Protecting Medicos, SC To Hear Plea Tomorrow

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Healthcare services at government and private hospitals in Delhi will be hit on Monday as scores of doctors, including those at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), have decided to boycott work for a day in support of their striking colleagues in West Bengal.

Resident Doctors’ Association of the AIIMS in Delhi, which earlier decided not to join the strike, announced withdrawal of all nonessential services from noon after a junior doctor at its trauma centre was assaulted in the early hours of Monday.

The medico at the Jai Prakash Narayan Apex Trauma Centre was allegedly assaulted for “giving preferential care to a critical patient”, the RDA said in a statement.

The Supreme Court on Monday said it will hear on June 18 a plea seeking safety and security of doctors in government hospitals across the country.

A vacation bench of Justices Deepak Gupta and Surya Kant agreed to list the matter for Tuesday after the counsel appearing for the petitioner, advocate Alakh Alok Srivastava, sought urgent hearing.

The petition has also sought directions to Union ministries of home affairs and health and West Bengal to depute government-appointed security personnel at all state-run hospitals to ensure safety and security of doctors.

Meanwhile, the striking junior doctors in West Bengal on Monday reiterated their demand to hold an open door meeting with Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and said they have not received any official invitation from the state government regarding any meeting.

“We are sad that the patients are suffering due to this ongoing impasse and want this dispute to be resolved immediately. We do not want a closed door meeting with the CM. We want the conversion to be held in the presence of live media and sufficient representatives from all medical colleges,” a representative of the protesting doctors of the NRS Medical College and Hospital said on the seventh day of the strike.

“There have been media reports that a meeting has been scheduled between the agitators and the Chief Minister at the state secretariat Nabanna at 3 p.m. today. But we want to clarify that we have not received any official intimation from the state government yet. We think this is just a ploy to confuse the people,” he said.

The Indian Medical Association (IMA) had given the June 17 strike call with the withdrawal of non-essential health services across the country. IMA members will also stage a dharna at its headquarters.

Doctors at the Centre-run Safdarjung Hospital, Lady Hardinge Medical College and Hospital, RML Hospital as well as Delhi government facilities such as GTB Hospital, Dr Baba Saheb Ambedkar Hospital, Sanjay Gandhi Memorial Hospital and Deen Dayal Upadhyay Hospital will not function on Monday.

The apex medical body, IMA, said all outpatient departments (OPDs), routine operation theatre services and ward visits will be withdrawn for 24 hours from 6 am on Monday to 6 am Tuesday.

Emergency and casualty services will continue to function, it said.

Meanwhile, the Delhi Medical Association (DMA) and the Federation of Resident Doctors Association (FORDA) have extended their support to IMA’s strike call.

“Emergent Executive Committee Meeting convened today decided to support the call given by IMA for withdrawal of non-essential services on 17th June (Monday) for 24 hours (6am to 6am) to protest against violence against doctors and hospitals. All clinics, nursing homes, diagnostic centrés and hospitals are requested to shut down routine services,” a statement by DMA said.

Junior doctors in West Bengal are on strike since June 11 after two of their colleagues were reportedly attacked and seriously injured by relatives of a patient who died at the NRS Medical College and Hospital in Kolkata.

In a show of solidarity, medical practitioners across the country chose not to work, leaving patients in the lurch.