Yavatmal: Resident doctors protest attack on colleagues

Resident doctors at the Shri Vasantrao Naik Government Medical College and Hospital in Maharashtra’s Yavatmal district have gone on strike on Friday, leaving senior doctors and professors to take care of patients. This comes in the wake of two resident doctors being stabbed with a knife by patient on Thursday evening.

The condition of the two doctors is stable, according to the Maharashtra Association of Resident Doctors (MARD), Yavatmal.

The patient who attacked the doctors was admitted to the hospital and is mentally unstable. The accused had stabbed himself two days ago, injuring himself, and was admitted to the hospital for treatment. He has now been arrested.

MARD, which is holding a protest at the premises, has written to Maharshtra Minister of Medical Education Girish Mahajan, raising concern about the incident and asking for greater security.

Two resident doctors at the hospital were stabbed with a knife late on Thursday by a mentally unstable patient, sparking off an agitation among the doctors, said Yavatmal superintendent of police (SP) Pawan Bansod. One first-year general surgery doctor was on the rounds of the ward when the patient lunged forward and stabbed him in the neck and back with a fruit knife, injuring him seriously. Another doctor rushed to help but the patient stabbed him also, leaving him bleeding on the floor.

“The accused was admitted to Yavatmal Medical College Hospital. The accused had stabbed himself two days ago. He is a mentally unstable person. While the doctor was on rounds, the accused attacked him with a fruit cutter. The police arrested the accused on Thursday night,” Mr Bansod said.

Local police rushed to the ward, caught the patient and placed him under arrest.

MARD president Dr Avinash Dahiphale expressed support to the injured surgeons and strongly condemned the incident. He called upon all doctors to raise their voice and register their protest and urged the Maharashtra government to ensure proper security for medical personnel who are vulnerable to such attacks.

“We are protesting at the local level by not working at the hospital. Resident doctors from across the state will support us by wearing black ribbons while working at their respective hospitals,” Dr Dahiphale said.

“One police beat post in the premises with one PSI should be set up. At least one trained security person should be deployed in each ward. Metal detectors and baggage checkers should be installed at the main entrance of the hospital. An emergency alarm system should be installed at the hospital to alert the police. An entry pass system should be installed at the main gate and only one relative should be allowed with one patient inside the ward,” MARD said in a letter to Mr Mahajan.

Dr Sagar Dole, the MARD representative from Yavatmal, said that the hospital authorities had assured them earlier that "various security measures to be taken" for the safety of the doctors. “While most of the demands such as installing CCTV cameras, constructing a compound wall and installing flashlights have been fulfilled, important demands such as increasing the number of security guards and setting up police post were not fulfilled,” he said.

MARD has also demanded “strict action against whoever is responsible for attacking on-duty doctors and other medical staff as well as regular police patrolling and patrolling by security personnel.”

Published on: Friday, January 06, 2023, 10:24 PM IST