IMA launches Google form to monitor assaults on doctors

Dhanbad: Amid rising incidents of violence against medical professionals across the country, the Indian Medical Association (IMA), New Delhi, has introduced a new national reporting system to ensure that no such case goes unnoticed.

The new system is a Google Form where doctors from any part of India can report incidents of assault or abuse that happened to them or towards any other doctor. The doctors are required to fill in the relevant information on the Google form.

The Google Form link will create a central registry documenting all such incidents. The initiative seeks to maintain up-to-date information on violence against doctors, healthcare workers, and medical establishments nationwide.

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By consolidating data via the Google Form, IMA plans to press the Union government for a Central Act to prevent violence against medical professionals.

Dr D. Tiwari, IMA national vice-president (headquarters, Delhi), shared that IMA National President Dr Dilip Bhanushali has instructed state presidents and secretaries to upload any reports of violence against doctors onto this platform.

Meanwhile, the initiative has been welcomed by the Jharkhand chapter of IMA, which extended its strong support for the move.

Speaking in this regard, Dr Tiwari said, "Healthcare is a state subject, and sometimes reports of violence fail to draw attention from either state or national bodies." He emphasised that even incidents from remote areas will now be immediately visible to the national body, ensuring that no case goes unreported or overlooked.

Commenting on this, Dr Ajoy Kumar Singh, state coordinator (Ranchi), told the Jharkhand Story, "The move effectively uses technology to strengthen reporting mechanisms. Reporting incidents to the national body would allow pressure to be applied both at the state and central levels to ensure justice against perpetrators."

Dr A.K. Lal, vice-president of IMA Kolhan Division (Jamshedpur), noted that the national body often does not receive timely updates on violence in remote areas. This new link will provide real-time information, enabling faster action.

Dr Gauri Shankar, secretary of the IMA Deoghar chapter, praised the registry mechanism, saying it ensures that doctors nationwide are immediately aware of incidents happening anywhere in the country.

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