Even as task force says No need, Doctors body step up demand for Central Law on Violence Against Doctors

Moreover, a brutal assault was reported from Indore's Maharaja Yeshwantrao Hospital (MYH) where 7 doctors and other staff were attacked with belts, rods, and sticks over the non-availability of a bed. In Mumbai, a 40-year-old female medical officer and staff of Rajawadi Hospital were reportedly physically assaulted and verbally abused by a patient's relative. The incident occurred following a dispute over the decision to place the patient on a ventilator due to a decline in his health.

All these incidences have taken place in this week itself.

In light of the recent incidents of attacks on doctors, the Federation of All India Medical Students’ Association (FAIMA) has demanded a unified protection act for doctors to ensure the safety of doctors. FAIMA has sought details of incidents of attacks on resident doctors and to present them to the respective governments.

Speaking to Medical Dialogues, FAIMA general secretary Divyansh Singh, who is also the president of the Resident Doctors Association of King George’s Medical University, Lucknow, stated that FAIMA is trying to collect information about the ongoing and pending cases of violence against doctors and the association will approach the state resident doctors’ associations and other medical bodies to collect information regarding the same.

“We want a Central Protection Act which will be applicable for every corner of the country. People have normalized such incidents of assault on doctors. In the last month, there have been several incidents of attacks on doctors, especially on on-duty doctors. We have to understand that this is not just the problem of a particular state, we have recently seen cases of extreme violence in the Chennai attack where an on-duty oncologist was attacked, and in Kolkata also where the female doctor lost her life. Hence, this is a national problem,” he added.