NEW DELHI: In the ongoing strife between resident doctors and the Centre, patients are bearing the brunt across government hospitals in Delhi. People who had come from far off places could not get an appointment at Safdarjung, Lok Nayak and Ram Manohar Lohia hospitals as around 5,000 doctors on Friday resumed their strike against the delay in the NEET postgraduate counselling process. The doctors conducted protest marches on-campus and are expected to take these marches off premises as well in the coming days.
The doctors association had called off the strike on December 9 for one week to mourn the deaths of the Chief of Defence Staff General Bipin Rawat and other army personnel. The doctors were also assured by the health ministry that the court hearing to expedite the counselling process will be fast-tracked. However, the doctors resumed their strike on Friday stating that nothing positive had come from the Centre’s side. As emergency and OPD services remained shut, patients visiting hospitals could not consult doctors for treatment.
Amit, a 40-year-old farmer from Purnia, Bihar, had come to Safdarjung to get his 14-year-old daughter treated for chest tumour. “Because of the strike, we could not meet the doctor and now we have to stay for a few more days. Our stay at a guest house here is costing me Rs 500 per night,” said Amit.
The radiology department at Safdarjung had only a senior doctor for conducting tests. Twenty-five-year-old Sumit who wanted to get an MRI done, had been waiting from 8am but failed to get an appointment till 2pm. He had met with an accident on Thursday evening while going home from work. Barely covered with dressing tape, Sumit’s head was swollen and covered with bloodstains all over his face and he was unable to walk on his own.
“My husband met with an accident last night and got hit on the head. We gave him first aid, but now his head has swollen. The doctors asked for an MRI scan so we came here. We have been sitting here since morning, but our number is yet to come. Even the X-ray report will take three days, the doctors said,” Vinita Devi, wife of the injured man, lamented.
Trying his best to explain the situation, Dr Sarvesh Pandey, general secretary, Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital, said, “This (strike) is in the interest of the patients themselves. We should not have a shortage of doctors at a time when the Omicron variant is making its way in the country. We were assured by the health minister several times but nothing has been done,” Pandey, added further.
Similar cries of help were also expressed by the doctors at Safdarjung. Dr Pooja Gunwal said she has not met her parents for six months due to the extreme workload, and kept away from them during the second wave. “We have suffered mentally, physically and emotionally. There were days when we worked for 24 hours and took care of patients, and even counselled their relatives who lost their loved ones in Covid wave. We also deserve time so that we can work better with a fresh mind,” said Dr Pooja.