Residents doctors of Mumbai’s JJ Hospital continue their strike as state fails to break ice
The doctors are demanding a written assurance from the state over security measures.
The ‘mass leave’ of 400 resident doctors at JJ Hospital entered the second day on Sunday, despite the state government’s assurance to deploy 1,100 security guards in state hospitals.
As a mark of solidarity, resident doctors of Sion Hospital will also bunk work on Monday.
The doctors are not using the word ‘strike’ to avoid legal implications. However, patients were not affected by the strike as fewer people visited hospital on Sunday and leave of senior doctors was cancelled. The doctors, who went on an indefinite strike after two of their colleagues were assaulted on Saturday, claimed that they had not received any written assurance from the medical education department to resolve the security issue. As they remained absent from emergency and out of patient (OPD) wards of JJ Hospital, the administration has cancelled summer vacations of more than 110 senior doctors.
Multiple meetings were organised with the members of Maharashtra As
sociation of Resident Doctors (MARD), the public health department, the medical education department and chief minister Devendra Fadnavis over the weekend, to increase the security of hospitals.
“In a meeting attended by public health minister Deepak Sawant and officials, we decided that 1,100 security personnel will be appointed in the next 15 days. Until then, adequate police protection will be provided at hospitals. We will inform the Bombay HC about the decision,” said state medical education minister Girish Mahajan. However, MARD refused to call off the strike unless it gets a written assurance from the state government.
“We held two to three meetings with the state medical education department and directorate of medical education and research, but the authorities are not taking our demands seriously. They don’t understand the urgency of the issue. We will not resume work until there is a written assurance,” said MARD president Dr Sarang Donarkar.
Doctors have demanded immediate installation of centralised alarm system to alert security personnel; and deployment of at least two guards for each ward. They have renewed their demands after Dr Atish Parikh and Dr Shefali Dharmadhikari along with a nurse and a relative of another patient who tried to intervene were attacked by relatives of a 45-year-old patient Zahidabibi Shah, who died early on Saturday.
Dr S Nandankar, dean of JJ Hospital, said he had cancelled vacations of more than 110 senior doctors to ensure that patients were not inconvenienced. JJ Hospital has 220 doctors.
“According to the demand, apart from the existing 180 security personnel, we will need 200 more. We will send the proposal to the state government. Even the alarm system will be hopefully installed immediately,” said Dr Nandankar.
A senior doctor said more than 180 guards have been manning the premises since the 2017 strike, covering all entry and exit points, elevators and six major wards. He said it was impossible to depute guards at all 44 wards.