The Union Health Ministry on Wednesday issued an Office Memorandum on the National Task Force, formed by the Supreme Court for the safety of medical professionals.
The panel will be headed by the Cabinet Secretary of the Government of India, as its chairman was constituted following the directions of the Supreme Court on August 20.
“The 14-member working group comprises ex-officio and expert members. It includes Cabinet Secretary, Government of India – Chairman, Home Secretary, Government of India, Secretary, M/o Member Health & Family Welfare Secretary, Government of India, Chairman, National Medical Commission, Chairman, National Board of Examinations, Surgeon Vice Admiral Arti Sarin, AVSM, VSM, Director General of Medical Services (Navy), Dr. D. Nageshwar Reddy, Chairman & Managing Director, Asian Institute of Gastroenterology and AIG Hospitals, Hyderabad, Dr. M. Srinivas, Director, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, (AIIMS), Delhi, Dr. Pratima Murthy, Director, National Institute of Mental Health and Neuro Sciences (NIMHANS), Bengaluru, Dr. Goverdhan Dutt Puri, Executive Director, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Jodhpur; Dr. Saumitra Rawat, Chairman, Institute of Gastroenterology Surgical, GI & HPB Onco-Surgery & Liver Transplantation and Member, Board “Dr. Pallavi Saple, Dean, Grant Medical College and Sir JJ Group of Hospitals, Mumbai and Dr. Padma Srivastava, former Professor, Department of Neurology, AIIMS, Delhi. Currently she is the Chairperson, Neurology, Paras Health Gurugram,” it said.
The office memo stated that the NTF was to submit an interim report within three weeks and the final report within two months from the date of the Supreme Court of India’s order of August 20.
“The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare will provide logistical support, including travel arrangements, accommodation and secretarial assistance, and bear the travel and other related expenses of the NTF members,” it said.
The NTF will make effective recommendations to remedy concerns regarding the safety, working conditions and well-being of medical professionals and other related issues, the statement said.
The NTF will prepare an action plan categorized under two headings: prevention of violence against medical professionals and provision of safe working conditions, and provide an enforceable national protocol for decent and safe working conditions for interns, residents, senior residents, physicians, nurses and all medical professionals.
“The term medical professionals covers all medical professionals including doctors, medical students undergoing their mandatory rotating medical internship (CRMI) as part of the MBBS course, resident doctors and senior resident doctors and nurses (including those who are nursing interns),” it said.
“The NTF will be free to make recommendations on all aspects of the action plan and on any other aspects that members wish to cover. The NTF will be free to make additional suggestions, where appropriate. The NTF will also suggest appropriate timelines for the implementation of the recommendations. The NTF may consult relevant stakeholders in this regard,” he added.
Due to the ongoing strike by resident doctors, OPDs are affected by 65 per cent, admissions by 40 per cent, operation theatres are reduced by 90 per cent, laboratory services are reduced by 30 per cent, radiological investigations by 55 per cent, nuclear medicine by 20 per cent till Wednesday 4.30 pm at AIIMS, Delhi.
Earlier today, the IMA wrote to Union Health Minister JP Nadda, stressing the urgent need to pass a central law to address attacks on doctors and healthcare facilities and pointing out that there is a special need for violence against doctors and hospitals.
The IMA also expressed its gratitude to JP Nadda for hosting its delegation on 13 August on the issue of a central law on violence against doctors and hospitals, workplace safety for healthcare workers and working and living conditions of resident doctors.
He said the IMA had called for withdrawal of services of the medical fraternity, except for casualties and emergencies, across India on August 17.
“The suspension of service was almost total in almost all districts of the country,” he added.
He mentioned that the Supreme Court intervened in the rape and murder case of a junior doctor at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital in Kolkata and formed a National Task Force (NTF) in this regard.
“The issue of promulgating an ordinance for the Central Act for the Protection of Health Professionals remains pending. The IMA is very keen on a central law in this regard,” the letter said.
He also submitted a list of facts for JP Nadda’s consideration.
“The Clinical Establishments (Registration and Regulation) Act, 2010 was enacted by Parliament at the request of four states, despite the fact that hospitals and dispensaries are included in the State List of the Constitution,” he added.
The IMA also highlighted that a draft bill – the Health Services Personnel and Clinical Establishments (Prohibition of Violence and Damage to Property) Bill, 2019 – was made public after due consultations with all stakeholders. The Union Ministries of Home Affairs and Law were involved, along with the Ministry of Health, in drafting the bill.
He also mentioned that the Epidemic Diseases (Amendment) Ordinance, 2020 was proclaimed on 22 April 2020, amending the Epidemic Diseases Act, 1897 during the context of COVID-19.
The IMA stated that “doctors constitute a separate class due to the nature of their professional services. The Supreme Court recognised this in the Jacob Mathew vs State of Punjab and Another judgment of 2004.”
“There are special laws enacted for specific demands like the POCSO Act. We, the Indian Medical Association, are appealing to you as there is a special demand regarding violence against doctors and hospitals. Doctors are vulnerable at their workplace. The State has an inescapable duty to provide safety and security to doctors and other healthcare workers. The ‘right to life’ is a fundamental right,” the IMA letter reads.
“The 25 state laws in this regard have not prevented violence across the country. Very few FIRs have been filed and very few convictions have been made. There is an urgent need to pass a central law on violence against doctors and hospitals. This is deeply felt by the medical community in India,” he added.
“We demand that the Bill of 2019 incorporating the amendment clauses of the Epidemic Diseases Amendment Act, 2020 and the Government of Kerala’s Grey Code Protocol on ‘Prevention and Management of Violence against Health Workers’ be proclaimed as an ordinance to instil confidence in the minds of doctors in India,” the letter reads.
On Tuesday morning, the Supreme Court constituted a 10-member national task force to make recommendations on violence prevention and safe working conditions for medical professionals. The task force includes Surgeon Vice Admiral Arti Sarin, among others.
Days after the rape and murder of a junior doctor in Kolkata sparked nationwide protests, the Supreme Court took up the case on its own motion and directed the task force to submit an interim report within three weeks and a final report within two months.
The top court also asked the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to submit a report on the status of investigation in the rape case. The court asked the West Bengal government to submit a report on the incident of mob attack at RG Kar Hospital on August 15.
On August 9, a female postgraduate doctor was allegedly raped and murdered while on duty at the RG Kar Medical College in Kolkata, triggering nationwide strikes and protests by the medical community.
(Only the headline and image of this report may have been reworked by Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Disclaimer:
The information contained in this post is for general information purposes only. We make no representations or warranties of any kind, express or implied, about the completeness, accuracy, reliability, suitability or availability with respect to the website or the information, products, services, or related graphics contained on the post for any purpose.
We respect the intellectual property rights of content creators. If you are the owner of any material featured on our website and have concerns about its use, please contact us. We are committed to addressing any copyright issues promptly and will remove any material within 2 days of receiving a request from the rightful owner.