New Delhi: Violence against doctors is on the rise all over the world. However, India has a unique problem. Meager government spending on healthcare has resulted in poor infrastructure and human resource crunch in government hospitals. Hence, people are forced to seek private healthcare. Small and medium private healthcare establishments, which provide the bulk of healthcare services, are isolated, disorganized and vulnerable to violence.
To curb down the incidences of violence against doctors and hospitals, the Indian Medical Association (IMA) will conduct a National Level seminar on ‘Doctor Patient Relationship and violence on doctors’ on 26th May 2018 in the Capital. The National seminar will be inaugurated by LG Anil Baijal. More than 300 doctors from all over India are expected to participate.
17 states have already brought out laws against the violence on doctors and hospitals, there is a wide disparity and very little scope of implementation among the state legislation’s due to the absence of a central law.
Addressing the Media, Dr RN Tandon, Secretary General, IMA Said, “The Govt. of India must propose a strong Central Act prohibiting violence against doctors in all forms, hues, shades, matching with the enabling existing provisions in the Indian Penal Code, so as to evoke uniformity across the States in respect of its implementation and thereby extend much needed and desired immunity to the doctors while on duty from all forms of violence from any and all sources as they be and declare clinical establishments as safe zones in a real sense. We will be conducting a National Level seminar on ‘Doctor Patient Relationship and violence on doctors’ on 26th May 2018”
Dr Vinay Aggarwal, Past National President, IMA said, “Reiterating the demand for central legislation against such violent practices, IMA realizes that more has to be done on the issue than just to legislate it. The problem reaching a serious dimension, of late even the PM Narendra Modi has condemned the atrocities. The seminar will also incorporate sensitizing all the stakeholders to have empathy towards the medical fraternity and healthcare establishments. With the changing milieu, there is an urgent need to create a protocol for improving the doctor-patient relationship.”
Addressing the issue, Dr Vinod Kumar Monga, Finance Secretary, IMA, said, “Doctors and hospitals are largely impacted with the growing intolerance and violence against them. Doctors who were traditionally revered to as Gods are now becoming victims to the intolerance of the patient and their relatives. The social norms are being severely distorted even as the society stands as a mute spectator to this degeneration of our public life.”
