The rape and murder of the young doctor at the Kolkatta based RG Kar Medical College has stunned the entire nation. Cutting across demographics, genders and professions, the country has risen in one voice and taken to the streets demanding swift action against the perpetrators of this heinous act. If there is any quibbling it is amongst the political class that is indulging in the usual blame game but even then the ruling TMC government of West Bengal stands isolated as its allies from the INDIA bloc have also condemned both the act as well as the state government’s response. The Congress, which lost the UPA government partly because of the gruesome 2010 gangrape and murder of a young girl in the capital on its watch, has been one of the first to demand swift action against the guilty.
Politics (and politicians) aside, the medical community has also risen in protest demanding swift justice as well as the enactment of a special law to ensure safety and security for the medical community as a whole. As many as 72 Padma Shri awardees have penned a letter to the Prime Minister asking for the same. The letter asks for a quick promulgation of a separate law to deal with violence, both physical and verbal, against doctors, medical professionals and medical institutions. Ironically the Prevention of Violence against Doctors, Medical Professionals and Medical Institutions bill was drafted in 2019 but it never made it to the parliament. During Covid however, the Centre had promulgated an ordinance to the Epidemic Diseases Act making violence against the medical professionals non bailable and punishable with a fine of Rs 5 lakh. The doctors would now want the government to take the next step and pass the bill specific to their safety.
Doctors are often at the receiving end of both verbal and physical abuse at the hands of irate patients who are faced with medical emergencies. But short staffing and long shifts have their own ask on the medical community. In addition, as one of the signatories, Dr Harsh Mahajan, Founder & MD Mahajan Imaging points out, if we cannot make our workplaces safe, how many parents would want their children to join the medical profession?
These are crucial issues that need to be dealt with for the medical professionals are one of the pillars of our community. As an initial response the government has reached out to some public hospitals such as the AIIMS in Delhi, with a promise to set up more CCTV cameras at strategic locations, enhanced security staff and stricter monitoring of entry and exit points. But it goes without saying that a lot more needs to be done.
