Uncertainty, Chaos Grip Patients as Protesting Doctors Boycott Duty at Delhi Hospitals
11:50 GMT 29.12.2021 (Updated: 10:41 GMT 19.07.2022)
© REUTERS / ANUSHREE FADNAVIS
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Since 27 November, resident doctors have been protesting to point out that the delay in new admissions to medical colleges has increased the workload in hospitals.
Patients across government hospitals in Delhi were left in the lurch on Tuesday, 28 December, after resident doctors started boycotting all medical services, including in emergency wards, to protest the police detention and manhandling of several medical professionals on Monday evening during a march.
Gates of Chacha Nehru Hospital closed as doctors protest.#neetpg2021counselling @FordaIndia pic.twitter.com/hQKb0WcLbM
— Somrita Ghosh (@Somrita_Ghosh) December 28, 2021
"I was supposed to get admitted today for my stone surgery to be held tomorrow. But today, the hospital guards told us that senior doctors are not working and I should come next week or later", Mamata, a 26-year-old woman, who was accompanied by her mother, told Sputnik on Tuesday, 28 December.
Mamata, along with her mother at RML Hospital
© Sputnik / Deexa Khanduri
"It had taken us 14 months to fix the date for surgery", Mamata's mother said while sharing that non-emergency wards had been shut down during the first and second COVID induced lockdowns, due to which the surgery was so delayed.
Ramesh Chand, who came from the outskirts of Delhi to Ram Manohar Lohia hospital, told Sputnik that he has been visiting the hospital for five days to show his father's report to the Oncology Department: "My father has cancer in the stomach. He's 62 years old. They don't have a single doctor to examine my father's report. What can we do? Shall we also protest?"
Ramesh Chand at RML Hospital
© Sputnik / Deexa Khanduri
"We don't have enough money to show him to a private hospital. If the strike continues for the next few weeks, who will be answerable for my father's health?", Chand added.
What Pushed Doctors to Boycott Their Duties?
According to Indian media reports, both central government and state-run hospitals in Delhi decided to boycott non-emergency services and held protests against the Delhi Police for the use of brutal force used against them during a protest.
Resident doctors of the centre-run Safdarjung Hospital participate in a protest called by the Federation of Resident Doctors' Association (FORDA) over the delay in National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test Postgraduate (NEET-PG) 2021 counselling, at the hospital in New Delhi.
© REUTERS / ANUSHREE FADNAVIS
Medical services by junior doctors resumed around noon on Tuesday in a few departments, officials at Delhi's two biggest hospitals - the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) and Ram Manohar Lohia (RML) - told Sputnik.
We want justice ⚖️ No phool No clap we don't want slap.
— Dr Arun chaudhary (@DR_ARUN_SURGEON) December 28, 2021
Northern railway central hospital is on indefinite strike including emergency services.
@FordaIndia @DoctorsResident @MoHFW_INDIA @WHO @ANI @abo @aajtak @ndtvindia @MirrorNow @HindustanTimes @EconomicTimes @drpragya_shukla pic.twitter.com/F4Z8JqZPKr
At the multi-specialty Safdarjung Hospital, patients were seen complaining about doctors being unavailable.
Delhi | People face difficulty as residents doctors are on strike, boycott OPD services at Safdarjung Hospital
— ANI (@ANI) December 28, 2021
"I'm not able to get treatment for my ailing child. I've been asked to go to some other hospital," says a mother of a patient. pic.twitter.com/bGhZHCU7zQ
On Monday, over 2,500 resident doctors were reportedly detained at the Sarojini Nagar Police Station in Delhi while marching towards federal Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya's residence. Many of them were dragged by law enforcement and thrashed in the street.
Resident doctors with centre-run government hospitals participate in a protest called by the Federation of Resident Doctors' Association (FORDA) over the delay in National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test Postgraduate (NEET-PG) 2021 counselling, at the hospital, in New Delhi.
© REUTERS / ADNAN ABIDI
The Federation of Resident Doctors' Association (FORDA), which is leading the doctors' protest, in a statement described the police brutality of Monday as a "Black Day in the history of the medical fraternity".
#PressRelease: We strongly condemn this brutal act & demand immediate release of all #ResidentDoctors. There will be complete #Shutdown of Healthcare Institutions. #MedicalFraternity of the nation must come forward in support. We urge all State #RDAs to join the agitation! @ANI pic.twitter.com/ipbOxcnGFN
— FORDA INDIA (@FordaIndia) December 27, 2021
Responding to FORDA's call, the Federation of All India Medical Association (FAIMA) has announced a nationwide withdrawal from all healthcare services from Wednesday (29 December) if the government fails to come up with concrete solutions to the doctors' demands.
Why are Doctors Protesting?
The National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (Postgraduate) (NEET-PG) exam which was scheduled for December 2020, was delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The exam was held in September 2021. But counselling for admissions, which was slated to start on 25 October for entry to medical colleges, was delayed, which sparked the protest.
Counselling has been delayed due to an ongoing case in the Supreme Court of India, challenging reservations for economically weaker sections (EWS) in the nationwide quota scheme for undergraduate and postgraduate medical and dental courses.
Resident doctors at the Federation of Resident Doctors' Association launched their protests, pointing out that the delay in new admissions to medical colleges has increased the workload in hospitals.
