Doctor's strike and their condemnation by courts
Ad nauseum we are inundated with news reports of High Courts directing stringent action against striking doctors. The issue of why the doctors needed to resort to strike or whether they are habitual protestors who strike work at the drop of a hat is not explored or studied. The knee jerk reaction of both the doctors and then of the courts who take suo moto notice or are approached in a PIL by a concerned citizen cannot be condoned given the seriousness of the issue of a strike by doctors. The core issues are left unaddressed as soon as the doctors rejoin duties under threat.
Are doctors frequent strikers ; No. 99 % of strikes that have happened in India by doctors are done by resident doctors of few large institutions. These residents are a floating population most of whom will go to their native places after their residency. Being temporary employees with the bait of a "Degree" in front of them they are exploited by the hospital administrators, senior doctors and even their own immediate senior residents. They are used as front line emergency handlers who work regular duty hours plus are posted to handle emergency patients during off duty hours. The extended duty hours, poor quality and unhygenic residential accomodations, combined with violence from patients or relatives in emotionally charged emergency departments very occasionally results in strikes by these residents. These residents cannot muster courage to go on another strike after the threats of courts and college authorities for the rest of their residency which means about 3-6 years. So obviously doctors strike work very infrequently and that too in small pockets. God forbid if doctors went on strike across the nation even once, like the bank employees and others.
Lucknow Bench of Allahabad high court recently in a PIL filed by a concerned advocate giving decision on the first day without hearing anyone from the striking doctors said " Doctors cannot go on protest for any reason and if patient dies during their strike the relatives should be paid Rs 25 lacs recoverable later from the striking doctors and criminal prosecution of striking doctors initiated". MLAG found this statement extremely galling and filed a SLP in Supreme court against this judgment. Doctors are individuals and citizens of the country, their postgraduate seats gained after going through intense competition and joining and working in KGMCU for some time were suddenly asked to go away and relinquish their seats following a court decision those seats were to be given to some other aspirants. What do the courts expect ? These Postgraduate seats are not given to them because they were offsprings of high and mighty. They had competed fiercely for these seats based on rules as published in the Prospectus published by KGMCU. Only those residents who were asked to relinquish their postgraduate seats had protested, the rest of the hospital staff was working.
I understand that merely on being slapped residents should not go on strike. Your honour but if one of them is stabbed can they then go on strike or what if one of them was killed or let us say 20 were killed , could they then go on strike. How is it possible for the learned court to say that doctors cannot strike or protest under any circumstances.
Bombay High Court observed orally in court in another recent incident where resident doctors went on strike following violence against their colleagues, that if the doctors are afraid they can resign and sit at home. Madras High Court recently stated that Doctors are like Gods so cannot strike under any circumstances. Strange is this country where the Gods can be assaulted, criminally prosecuted , penalized monetarily by mere mortals sitting in judgment on these "Gods". And why do these mere mortals need security. What are they afraid of. If they are afraid why do they not resign and sit at home ?
Resident doctors continue to work for insane number of hours every week, they are poorly paid and in some private institutions even this pay is only on paper besides paying crores as Tution fee, are frequently assaulted, suffer commonly from diseases like Tuberculosis, and other contagious diseases. Their suicides, divorce rate and nervous breakdowns fail to move the collective conscience of even their own seniors what to talk of society and the judiciary.
Under RTI Medicos Legal Action Group (MLAG) has collected information from 57 Government Medical Colleges regarding the resident doctor working hours, salaries, accommodation, illness, suicide etc and we have received all kinds of evasive replies. Someday maybe their issues will be addressed and this "mother in law" syndrome which exists in post graduate medical education where every senior feels they have undergone this mistreatment so the current crop of residents should also undergo the same, will disappear,
Dr Neeraj Nagpal
Convenor,Medicos Legal Action Group, Managing Director MLAG Indemnity,
Ex President IMA Chandigarh
Director Hope Gastrointestinal Diagnostic Clinic,
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