Government and private doctors in the State on Tuesday protested the National Medical Commission Bill, which was tabled in Parliament, calling many of its clauses draconian and retrograde. While government doctors stopped out-patient services for an hour in the morning and staged dharnas, private doctors were to suspend all routine work — except for emergencies and inpatient care — from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. The protest, however, was withdrawn on Tuesday afternoon, when the Bill was referred to the Parliamentary Standing Committee.
On Monday, both the Tamil Nadu Government Doctors Association (TNGDA) and the Indian Medical Association (IMA), Tamil Nadu State Branch, had called for the protest in line with the Indian Medical Association’s country-wide agitation call. K. Senthil, State president, TNGDA, said out-patient services were stopped for an hour only at medical colleges and district headquarters hospitals.
Emergencies handled
“We ensured all emergencies were taken care of,” he said. However, there were delays in seeing patients due to the temporary halt, he said.
Medical services were affected considerably in the southern districts, with hundreds of government and private doctors boycotting out-patient services.
A majority of the government hospitals in these districts, including the Government Rajaji Hospital in Madurai, Government Medical College Hospital in Sivaganga, and Government Medical College Hospital in Thoothukudi, saw doctors staging demonstrations on the hospital premises in the morning, raising slogans against the proposed bill.
Emergency care services and scheduled surgeries were unaffected, office bearers of IMA in the southern districts said.
In Coimbatore, more than 4,000 doctors working with 300-odd private and government hospitals took part in the strike.
In Erode district, over 3,000 doctors in 280 hospitals abstained from duty, affecting out-patient services. However, emergency services were attended to.
In Tirupur too, there was an agitation and out-patient services were suspended.
At Madras Medical College, several doctors staged an agitation on Tuesday morning, said A. Ramalingam, State organising secretary, Service Doctors and Post Graduates’ Association, which also participated in the protest.
“Only outpatient services were affected. All casualties, surgeries, deliveries and intensive care units were taken care of,” he said. Black badges were on display at the Government Chromepet Hospital.
Some private hospitals in Chennai said they had halted routine services and rescheduled elective out-patient care to Wednesday. Doctors too sported black badges in support of the protest.
However, at a few other hospitals, work went on as usual.
B. Sridhar, State secretary, IMA, T.N, said almost all hospitals under the Association participated. “Regular outpatient tokens were not registered, but patients in distress were taken care of,” he said.
