Health services remained paralysed in State capital due to the daylong strike by junior doctors on Tuesday. Hamidia, Sultania and Kamla Nehru hospitals associated with Gandhi Medical College (GMC) were adversely affected due to the mass leave of junior doctors.
Claiming that the strike of junior doctors did not affect the routine functioning of the hospitals, GMC’s acting Dean Dr Bhanu Dubey said that 914 patients were checked and treated in the OPDs and 35 patients among them were admitted. Also five major operations and two minor surgeries were carried out in the hospital. X-ray testing of 114 patients was carried out while 14 units of blood were provided to different patients. Besides, the junior doctors claimed that they operated a parallel OPD to examine the patients in the Hamidia hospital premises.
However, the fact was entirely different. Patients admitted in the hospital faced the apathy of doctors and staff due to the strike as usually all the patients are treated by the junior doctors. Senior doctors are called only when an emergency occurs. Patients and their relatives kept waiting for the doctors to examine them but no doctor visited the wards. Besides, several patients who were scheduled to be operated kept waiting the whole day but they were not called for the surgery.
Ravi Namdev, a 15-year-old boy from Rajgarh district was going to be operated for kidney stone, whole day he was not allowed to eat anything to keep his stomach empty but by the end of the day his family member learnt that due to the junior doctors’ strike he will not be operated.
Namdev is admitted in the hospital since June 16 waiting for the surgery. Sanjay Namdev, father of Ravi, said “It took us long time for getting an appointment for Ravi’s operation but now we have to wait longer for the operation.” Rajo Bai was referred from Sagar district hospital for treatment but here in Hamidia she was not even admitted. Rajobai said “When I was referred to Hospital I thought I will get better treatment instead here we have been waiting for over four hours but none of the doctors even checked me. Hospital staffs are asking us to come later as no doctors are present on duty.”
Junior Doctors Association (JUDA) President Dr Aadarsh Bajpai said, “Junior doctors understand the need of patients that is why only a parallel OPD was started but we can not let the junior doctors get exploited. Junior doctors get least paid in Madhya Pradesh while many states like Rajasthan and Jharkhand doctors are getting Rs 40,000 as stipend with annual increment. If still demand is not accepted then junior doctors will go on indefinite strike.”