NMCH, PMCH junior doctors call off strike

PATNA: The junior doctors of

Nalanda Medical College and Hospital

(NMCH) and Patna Medical College and Hospital (PMCH) called off their strike on Friday morning following principal secretary (health) Sanjay Kumar’s assurance late Thursday evening to provide better security and other infrastructure in the coming months.

“We had demanded 10 armed guards but got two. Six armed guards should be posted outside the central emergency, two each outside gynaecology and paediatrics emergency wards. The principal secretary has assured us that the required security will be provided in a month. He will visit NMCH again on September 15 for inspection,” NMCH junior doctors association (JDA) president Dr Ravi Ranjan Prasad said.

The barricading work outside NMCH central emergency as per JDA’s demands has already started. “The hospital administration has also put up a chain outside the central emergency. The hospital main gate will be barricaded partially after 2pm every day,” NMCH JDA secretary Dr Rahul Shekhar said.

A temporary police outpost has also been set up near NMCH. “We have changed most of the CCTV cameras. We are also planning to set up an alarm system in the next two days,” NMCH hospital manager Dharmendra Kumar said.

The strike called by NMCH JDA on Tuesday evening had severely crippled health services in the hospital. Emergency services, OPDs, ICUs and OTs remained paralysed for more than two days. No junior doctors had visited the IPDs during the strike.

“Patients turned up but returned without treatment. A seven-year-old girl from Hilsa, who had been stung by a scorpion, died for lack of treatment,” NMCH sources said.

PMCH functioning was also affected as the JDA there had called for strike on Thursday morning in support of their NMCH counterparts. The OPD had been visited by 1,780 patients for treatment during the strike. On regular days, this number ranges between 2000-2500. Altogether 193 patients were brought to the PMCH emergency. On normal days, this number ranges between 250-300. Altogether 22 patients could not be operated upon at PMCH due to the strike.