NEET-PG counseling: Patient care services hit as resident doctors’ strike enters second day

NEW DELHI: Patient care services were affected for the second consecutive day on Saturday as resident doctors of three Centre-run hospitals boycotted all services, including emergency, as part of a nationwide protest called by FORDA over NEET-PG 2021 counselling delay. Resident doctors at Ram Manohar Lohia, Safdarjung and Lady Hardinge hospitals had resumed the strike on Friday, saying the government allegedly made a "fake promise". They pointed out the "acute shortage" of resident doctors across the country as the counselling of the NEET-PG 2021 batch has already been delayed by eight months.

On December 9, the resident doctors had said they were suspending the agitation called by the Federation of Resident Doctors' Association (FORDA) for a week following the health ministry's assurance to expedite court hearing and subsequently fast-track the counselling process. However, on Wednesday, FORDA wrote to Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya, informing him that it was resuming the strike from December 17.

"The plight of overburdened and exhausted resident doctors seems to have fallen on deaf ears of the authorities who do not seem to be concerned about the shortage of healthcare workforce due to non-admission of a fresh batch of resident doctors. "With the threat of the third wave of COVID-19 looming large, the best the authorities could have done was to expedite the counselling and subsequent admission process - instead, there is inaction and lack of urgency in the matter," it said. "Hence, as informed earlier, resident doctors are left with no choice but to go for withdrawal from all services (routine as well as emergency) in healthcare institutions, December 17, 2021 onwards. The onus of this unfortunate situation affecting healthcare services is on the authorities," FORDA's letter read.

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FORDA president Dr Manish said the three Centre-run facilities and resident doctors of Maulana Azad Medical College (MAMC) have resumed the protest, and an appeal has been issued to other RDAs across the country to again join the stir. Meanwhile, in a statement, FORDA alleged that "doctors in multiple healthcare institutions are being threatened in various ways to abstain from the agitation". Akash Yadav, vice-president, Resident Doctors Association of Delhi government-run MAMC, on Saturday said resident doctors of the hospital too had resumed their stir from Friday morning, and boycotted all routine and emergency services, affecting patient care services. Loknayak Jaiprakash Hospital, GB Pant Hospital and Guru Nanak Eye Centre are attached with MAMC. LNJP is the biggest facility in the city run by the Delhi government, and the nerve centre of its fight against the COVID-19 pandemic.