HYDERABAD: Postgraduate students at Osmania Medical College (OMC) who regularly work for 36-55 hours at a stretch say that stress has become an integral part of their life. They are demanding that a dedicated psychiatric counsellor has to be appointed for the college, whom the students can approach.
The alleged suicide of OMC PG II year student J Savitha on Tuesday adds to list of OMC medicos who took their lives in the recent time. In two separate incidents that occurred in October last year, a first-year MBBS student Y Sai Kumar Reddy and a PG anaesthesia student committed suicide.
Soon after that incident suicides, counselling classes were organised for one week at a stretch. But after that there has been no further initiative by the college, said some of the medicos contacted by Express.
“Postgraduate students usually work for 36 hours at a stretch and sometimes it gets extended to even 55 hours. We take nap for 2-3 hours maximum in between. We have to wake up if there is a case. Amidst this, even a minor personal problem aggravates stress levels. A dedicated psychiatric counsellor is needed for OMC”, said a junior doctor. After an exhausting 36-hour shift, the medicos get a break of about 14-hours.
Junior doctors working at government hospitals said that there is a possibility for incomplete or wrong diagnosis of patients due to stress is serious concern.
“Since we work at government hospitals, there will be heavy flow of patients all the time. In stressful conditions of working 36 hours at a stretch, there is a possibility of incomplete diagnosis of a patient. At Government Maternity Hospital, Sultan Bazar, six to seven junior doctors attend close to 800 out patients
everyday”, said another junior doctor.“We have a counselling room. After one month of first batch of MBBS, the counsellor will be available on call. A person who sits at helpdesk, , is available on all days,” Dr Aruna Ramaiah said.
Savitha was a member of JUDA strike
The PG student J Savitha who committed suicide on Tuesday and Sravani who took her life in October-2016 by injecting ansethesia drugs were classmates and were friends. Savitha had actively taken part in recent JUDA strike, said friends.