The Indian Medical Association (IMA) will be holding a 24-hour nationwide stike today i.e. August 17. IMA stated that there will be withdrawal of non-emergency and OPD services starting 6 am today.
Following the IMA's call for a nationwide strike, an increasing number of medical professionals from both public and private healthcare facilities across the country have joined the protest over the alleged brutal rape and murder of a female trainee doctor at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital in Kolkata.
1. IMD said that all services, except for the casualty ward and essential services, will be withdrawn for 24 hours from 6 am on August 17 to 6 am on August 18 across sectors.
2. In Karnataka, the government suspended the leaves of medical officers and surgeons in government hospitals on Friday. The Health and Family Welfare Department issued a circular instructing district health officers, surgeons, and hospital administrators to ensure that emergency services remain unaffected to avoid inconvenience to the public.
3. In Maharashtra, Dr. Pratik Debaje, president of the Maharashtra State Association of Residential Doctors (Central-MARD), stated on August 16 that 6,000 to 7,000 senior resident doctors affiliated with the Maharashtra Association of Bonded Resident Doctors (MABRD) and the Association of State Medical Interns (ASMI) joined the strike on Friday. Currently, around 17,000 to 18,000 resident doctors in Maharashtra are participating in the strike, Debaje said.
4. In Goa, IMA will be hold a protest march today to demand justice for the doctor. The march will begin at Azad Maidan in Panaji at 9:00 am today, proceeding to the Old GMC Complex near ESG. The protest aims to address women's safety in workplaces, as reported by PTI.
5. The Faculty Association of AIIMS (FAIMS), Delhi, has announced that routine OPD and operation theatre services will be suspended on Saturday due to the protest while doctors at the Centre-run hospitals Safdarjung and RML will hold a silent protest march, sporting black ribbons, in solidarity with the protesting doctors.
6. According to the FAIMS order, it was unanimously decided that apart from emergency medical services, including casualty, emergency operation theatre (OT), ICU and wards, no routine hospital services such OPD, OT, laboratory will function today.
7. Speaking of IMA's demands, it has issued a strong call for a central law to protect doctors and hospitals. The IMA also demanded a significant policy to address violence against doctors and hospitals.
8. The IMA has also suggested that an ordinance similar to the one enacted during the COVID-19 pandemic would be appropriate in this situation. "The security protocols of all hospitals should be no less than an airport. Declaring the hospitals as safe zones with mandatory security entitlements is the first step. CCTVs, deployment of security personnel and the protocols can follow," an official release said.
9. In addition to security concerns, the IMA has also highlighted the dire working conditions faced by resident doctors. They pointed out that the victim had been on a 36-hour duty shift and that the lack of safe spaces and adequate rest areas for doctors needs to be urgently addressed.
10. The IMA has also demanded a professional investigation of the crime within a specific timeframe. "Meticulous and professional investigation of the crime in a timeframe and rendering of justice. Identify the hooligans of vandalism and award exemplary punishment. Appropriate and dignified compensation to the bereaved family commensurate with the cruelty inflicted," IMA stated.
(With all inputs from ANI, PTI)
