‘Join service only after ensuring self-protection’: Tripura govt doctors appeal co-workers

Protesting against alleged attacks on doctors during their duty and claiming that no safety has been ensured to them, Tripura government doctors made an online appeal to their co-workers to be in service only after ensuring their protection by themselves and withstanding insults by outsiders.

The appeal was made after a doctor, Dr Tamal Sarkar was attacked by some people at a hospital in Khowaion Thursday after he refused to visit a patient outside the hospital during his hospital duty hours.

The All Tripura Government Doctors’ Association ( ATGDA) made this appeal through social media recently and claimed that as doctors are responsible to cater proper health services to the patients in hospitals, likewise the government has the responsibility to ensure safety to the doctors. They also claimed that such assault on doctors also happened in different hospitals in different times.

The doctors’ association asked its members to become mentally prepared to protect themselves as the administration is busy in doing much more vital jobs.

“You all need to become mentally prepared while working in a government hospital, that anyone can come and slap or punch you anytime for any or no reason. If you silently accept such insult, then do government service. Otherwise, leave the job and join politics, contest elections, do business or open paan shop or any other thing. Your dignity will be maintained. No one will slap you,” the ATGDA wrote on Facebook.

“If they are unable to ensure protection to the health workers, then it is our misfortune. We have accepted this misfortune and that’s why we will not appeal for this (safety) to anyone anymore,” said ATGDA.

They also said that if the health workers don’t feel secure in their workplace and cannot provide services to the patients, then the hospitals with tiles, modern equipment, medicines and tall speeches could not improve health care services for the people.

However, they also added that the government or administration will take legal action against doctors if they are found doing anything wrong or showing negligence towards their duty.

Director of Directorate of Health Services Dr Subhasish Debbarma said, “The concerned chief medical officer lodged a case in this regard. He also forwarded a report of the incident to me today (Saturday). We will forward the same to the state government. They will decide their course of action.” However, he said that he is not aware of any such social media post.