Kochi: Nurses protest extra night duty burden

Kochi:The Government Medical College, Ernakulam nurses staged a protest demonstration in front of the college on Monday, against shortage of nurses for night duty. They also submitted a memorandum for the same, to the college Principal. Their major woe has been cited as extra night duties eating into their duty off's , after a night shift.

In an hour and a half's dharna, the nurses said though many problems remained unresolved, they were not shirking their responsibilities and were staging a short protest.

They seemed to be upset about the partisan attitude of the authorities towards some of their counterparts, who were given preferential treatment by being kept off during night shifts. They brought to light the fact that the government had granted them exemption from night shifts in its letter, which does not specify the time period for the same.

Speaking about staff strength, the protesters informed that a mere 137 were employed by the college hospital and this number included permanent, contractual and daily wagers. This according to them is a number too small for a 500 bedded hospital. The number of patients has also gone up since the government take over since 2013, they added.