NEW DELHI: A junior doctor from Centre-run Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital was allegedly attacked on duty by the attendants of a patient who visited the emergency ward of the hospital on Tuesday. The victim, Dr Rohit Yadav, alleged that the attendants punched and hit him with a bottle. He sustained minor injuries. The scuffle broke out when the attendants, who came with the patient in the emergency ward, were asked to come one at a time, said Yadav.
“I approached them and reiterated that as per the rules, only one attendant is allowed to accompany the patient. The abuse escalated into a physical altercation,” he said. When asked whether the guards tried to stop the attendants, Yadav said, “Only two guards were on duty and they could not stop the attendants.”
Dr Ajay Singh, President, Resident Doctors Association (RDA), RML Hospital, said that the RDA has demanded ample security for the doctors to avert any such incidents. “We have asked the hospital to constitute a quick response team and beef up security,” he said.
However, the doctors said that the frequency of such incidents increased after the marshals were removed from the hospital premises at the directions of Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya.“The decision of removing bouncers has proven counter-productive. The doctors must be provided with a confident environment to work,” said Dr Manish Jangra, Chief Advisor, Federation of All India Medical Association (FAIMA).