The Hindu : Front Page : Doctors' strike hits MCHs

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Thursday, Jan 04, 2007
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Doctors' strike hits MCHs

Staff Reporter

Protest against arrest of doctor for patient's death

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The functioning of all five Government Medical College Hospitals in the State were disrupted on Wednesday, following the strike call given by the Kerala Government Medical College Teachers' Association (KGMCTA), in protest against the arrest of a doctor at Kottayam MCH for his alleged failure to give timely medical care to a patient.

All senior doctors at Medical College Hospitals stayed away from duty from 8 a.m. on Wednesday, which affected the functioning of all out-patient clinics. Emergency services functioned as usual, where post-graduate medical students and house surgeons attended to patients.

The strike followed the incident at the Kottayam MCH where Dr. P. Ashokan, unit chief of the Orthopaedic department, was arrested after a 23-year-old accident victim, who had been admitted to the hospital in the early hours on January 1, died later in the day. Following large-scale public protests that the youth was not given proper medical attention by doctors, Dr. Ashokan was arrested from his house by the police. He was also issued a suspension notice with immediate effect by the Director of Medical Education (DME).

Casualty services

At the Thiruvananthapuram MCH also, casualty services, including emergency surgeries, were conducted. However, all elective surgeries scheduled for the day were dropped in the absence of senior doctors.

The doctors took out a protest march from the MCH campus to the Directorate of Medical Education, where they submitted a representation to the DME, Meenu Hariharan. The Kerala House Surgeons' Association has declared their solidarity with the KGMCTA and announced that the junior doctors too would stay away from all hospital duties, except emergency services, on Thursday.

The KGMCTA, in a statement issued here, protested against the manner in which Dr. Ashokan, who was not on duty at the time, was arrested by the police within hours of the patient's death, without even an enquiry.

Meanwhile, the Principal of Kottayam MCH, who conducted an enquiry into the incident on a directive from the DME, has reported that there has been no negligence on the part of doctors. The Principal has sought revoking the suspension of Dr. Ashokan.

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