20 die as junior doctors go on strike at PMCH

PATNA: At least 20 people died due to alleged lack of medical attention as junior doctors of Patna Medical College and Hospital (PMCH) went on an indefinite strike on Monday after attendants of a patient allegedly beat up one of their colleagues, Dr Dina Nath, in the paediatric department of the hospital.
Confirming 20 deaths, PMCH superintendent Dr Rajiv Ranjan Prasad said 25 operations were postponed due to the strike.“The strike crippled services in registration counter, indoor wards of all departments and the outdoor patient department. The emergency ward, however, remained unaffected,” Dr Prasad added.
The junior doctor, who sustained bruises to his face and severe bleeding from ears and nose due to the attack, was admitted to the intensive care unit of the hospital.
The incident occurred around 8am when the attendants of a 12-year-old boy, who was admitted to PMCH on Sunday night due to snakebite, asked Dr Nath to hand over the admission paper of the child so that he could be shifted to a private nursing home. When the doctor refused to accept their plea citing hospital rules, he was allegedly beaten up by the attendants.
President of PMCH Junior Doctors’ Association (JDA) Dr Vinay Kumar said the patient was given antidote after he was brought to the hospital. “The boy was recovering fast. His parents, however, were adamant to shift him to a private nursing home. Giving admission paper to patient’s attendants is against the rules of the hospital as we keep it to maintain three-year record. The doctors only give the discharge report,” he said.
Dr Kumar said the association has lodged an FIR with Pirbahore police station against the patient’s father, Anil Kumar, a resident of Khagaul. “The strike will continue till the arrest of the accused,” he added.
The parents of the 12-year-old boy, however, alleged that the condition of the child had deteriorated due to the negligence on the part of the junior doctors.
The JDA said the rule of two attendants for one patient should be strictly implemented in the paediatric and gynaecology departments.
PMCH superintendent Dr Prasad said despite deployment of 200 security personnel at the hospital, the junior doctors are still facing the brunt of patients’ attendants. “There is a need to tighten security at the hospital to avoid such incidents in future,” he added.