Resident doctors of the BYL Nair Hospital have threatened to go on mass leave from Tuesday afternoon if the civic body and hospital administration failed to approve their demand of converting Nair hospital into Covid and non-Covid.
Doctors believe that the hospital is totally dedicated in treating Covid patients following they have been asked to stop all emergency services for non-Covid patients due to which they have been affected. MARD president of Nair hospital said they are firm with their demands and if it is not fulfilled they will go on mass leave and they have also received from Central Mard.
Dr Nilesh Kalyankar, president, Nair MARD said they are not against Covid duty, but they are demanding for 50-50 per cent distribution of Covid and non-Covid work. Moreover, they have lost crucial months of training last year due to which they are unstable physically and mentally both. Currently there are 2,000 resident doctors in the city, of which 500 are from Nair hospitals.
“We have been collateral damage in Covid management that no one is bothered about. We cannot be shuffled to fill administration loopholes. We have been working tirelessly for the last one year, fighting against the Covid-19 pandemic, but the state government knew that the second wave will come, and there is no preparedness for it. Now suddenly, when numbers are increasing, we are given extra duties and the burden of Covid, while senior doctors just come for a round and go away,” he said.
Dr Kalyankar said those at Nair are suffering the most compared to other civic hospitals. “Ours is a tertiary care centre. Our beds should be made available for critical cases and not those who can be treated at Covid care centres. The authorities have been told to increase capacity as cases rise in the city. Oral instructions have been issued to turn away patients for elective surgeries. The process of vacating beds has started on our campus. They are planning around 1,000 Covid beds,” said the doctor.
Suresh Kakani, Additional Municipal Commissioner, said they have received a letter from the resident doctors of the Nair hospital regarding converting the hospital into both covid and non-covid. But considering the increasing number of corona cases they do not have any other option to admit covid patients to the hospital and being a doctor they have to do their work. “The hospital is treating non-covid patients along with covid patients. The hospital administration is looking into this matter and they will come to some conclusion. Moreover doctors cannot go on mass leave considering the Epidemic Act,” he said.
