GMC Akola Surgery Residents Assaulted, Doctors Demand Enhanced Security in all Maha Medical Colleges

Akola: In yet another instance of violence against doctors, three Surgery resident doctors from the Government Medical College (GMC) Akola were recently assaulted by the relatives of a patient.

The incident happened yesterday when around 20-25 people came inside the hospital and attacked the doctors with slippers and rods after the patient collapsed. Following this, the resident doctors at the institute initiated a strike closing the OPD services.

The resident doctors have demanded the authorities increase guard security and CCTV facilities and have also filed a police complaint regarding the incident, the President of the Maharashtra Association of Resident Doctors (MARD) at GMC Akola, Dr. Henry informed Medical Dialogues.

He said that the patient was a known case of Hemophilia and the doctors provided their best care to the patient. However, despite all the possible measures, the patient collapsed. After he was declared to be dead, several people came inside and assaulted the surgery residents.

"Once the incident happened, we gave an intimation to our administration that we were going into a strike," he said, adding that considering the patients, the emergency services have been kept operational and only OPD services have been closed.  However, if the situation continues, then the doctors will be forced to go for the shutting down of the emergency services as well, he added.

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Central MARD Extends its Support: 

Meanwhile, Maharashtra State Association of Resident Doctors (Central MARD) has also extended its support to the doctors. Issuing a Press Release today, Central MARD mentioned, "We are deeply disturbed by the reports of the assault on a Surgery resident doctor at Government Medical College & Hospital, Akola, which occurred on May 3, 2024. This act of violence against a member of the medical community is unacceptable and we strongly condemn it in the strongest terms."

"The safety and security of healthcare professionals are of utmost importance. They are at the forefront of providing essential services to the community, often under challenging circumstances. Any form of violence against them is not only a crime against the individuals but also an attack on the sanctity of the medical profession and public health at large," the release further added.

Extending its solidarity with the resident doctors and the entire medical fraternity at GMC Akola, the association has urged the authorities to take swift and decision action to ensure that the perpetrators are brought to justice. Furthermore, Central MARD demanded immediate measures to enhance the security at medical colleges and hospitals to prevent such incidents in the future.

MARD Demands Enhanced Security Measures at Maha Medical Colleges: 

Raising the issue, Central MARD today wrote to the Maharashtra DMER Commissioner and requested the authorities to ensure enhanced security measures at medical colleges in the State of Maharashtra.

Condemning the incident of violence against the doctors at GMC Akola, Central MARD pointed out in the letter that in recent times, there have been several reports of security breaches and incidents that have raised concerns about the safety of the students, faculty, and staff within the premises of the medical institutes.

"These incidents not only threaten the physical well-being of individuals but also disrupt the academic environment, which is crucial for the nurturing of future medical professionals," the association mentioned in the letter.

Highlighting the need for a secure and safe educational setting, MARD pointed out that it is the responsibility of the administration to ensure that robust security measures are in place.

"It is high time to strengthen the security measures at all medical colleges and hospitals in the state of Maharashtra and the administration should not wait till the next incident of assault on resident doctors," it mentioned in the letter.

Urging the authorities to ensure increased security, the association added, "CENTRAL MARD requests the administration to stringently look into the security of each and every medical college and hospital and ensure that the resident doctors who are the most important pillars of healthcare in India are safe."

Commenting on the matter, the President of Central MARD, Dr. Abhijit Helge told Medical Dialogues, "We have requested the commissioner of medical education to provide enhanced security measures at the earliest across all medical colleges in the state of Maharashtra."

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