Excelsior Correspondent
SRINAGAR, Dec 22: The patients in Shri Maharaja Hari Singh (SMHS) Hospital Srinagar continued to suffer as the strike of doctors entered 5th day today while the hospital administration failed to persuade medicos to end the strike.
The doctors at SMHS hospital are on strike since December 18 after two on-duty medicos’ were thrashed by attendants of a patient over the death of an elderly patient in Ward 9 of the hospital.
Resident Doctors Association (RDA) which called the strike against the thrashing is demanding security to the medicos’ of the hospital and also steps to improve the health care facilities. The RDA is seeking comprehensive security plan for the doctors as well as paramedical staff.
Meanwhile, due to continuous strike of doctors the patients suffer in Out Patient Department (OPD) and In Patient Department (IPD) sections of the hospital. Due to non-availability of doctors, scores of patients had to leave without treatment in OPD section, which is thronged by hundreds of people every day.
In a bid to end the strike of doctors, the hospital administration today held nearly three hour long meeting with the members of RDA at SMHS.
Sources said the meeting was attended by Principal Government Medical College (GMC) Srinagar Dr Kaiser Ahmad, Medical Superintendent (MS) Dr Nazir Ahmad Chowdhary and several Head of the Departments (HoDs).
Sources said that the agitating doctors raised several issues which include intense security plan and its implementation, provision of indigenous hospital security and the legislation of an Ordinance which makes assault on doctors a non-bailable offence.
A doctor who was part of the meeting told Excelsior on the condition of the anonymity that “till concrete steps are taken the strike won’t be called off”.
Medical Superintendent (MS) Dr Nazir Chowdhary meanwhile claimed that the doctors would be joining tomorrow at 10 AM but the RDA said that they are holding another meeting with hospital administration. But to this, an RDA member who was part of the Tuesday’s meet, said: “We are hopeful of positive outcome in tomorrow’s meeting. May be we will decide to return to work but as of now we have not called off our strike.”
Trending Now
E-Paper
Follow our WhatsApp channel