The rape and subsequent brutal murder of a doctor in Kolkata’s RG Kar Hospital has shamed the entire country. This incident has exposed the security of women doctors and staff in government hospitals. In such a situation, Aaj Tak took stock of some well-known government hospitals of Delhi late on the night of 15 August. You will be surprised to know that the dirty picture of mismanagement was seen in big hospitals like Safdarjung and Ram Manohar Lohia of the capital.
Some washrooms were found in such dirty condition that it was difficult to go there. Some had faulty flush and some had water shortage. There is no rest room for women doctors. The safety of trainee doctors who often work for 24 to 36 hours was left to God. Women doctors also expressed the problem of feeling scared in the dark corridors of the hospital.
The first midnight stop of Aaj Tak’s team was Delhi’s Safdarjung Hospital. Here, a resident doctor on duty said that they lack separate duty rooms for women doctors. She said that they have no private area for women to rest or relax during long shifts. And the condition of washrooms and toilets is pathetic. Washrooms are not usable. The flush doesn’t work. Bathrooms are so dirty that one doesn’t even feel like going there.
Another female resident doctor of Safdarjung Hospital said that it is scary to go from one department to another at night. The corridors are dark. We doctors have to run through this dark corridor to the blood bank to get blood for the patients. If you go towards the SSB building, the entire route is dark. We are surrounded by a crowd of patients. Anyone can come inside at any time. The situation is very bad. Anyone can come and do anything to us.
A male resident doctor of Safdarjung Hospital said that if we think practically, then this is a protest of two days. Here also, in two days, the HOD will say, “Okay, it’s done” and the same thing will happen again. This is the truth. And we will again get involved in the same work. My duty was for 24 hours. We are on duty every day. We have a duty room, which has a bed. We have 2-3 senior residents and 2 junior residents. We rest according to the shift. Sometimes we sleep for 1 hour.
At around 2 am on the night of 15 August, Aaj Tak’s team reached the famous Ram Manohar Lohia or RML Hospital in the heart of the capital. Here, outside the overcrowded emergency ward, patient attendants were found sleeping everywhere inside and outside. There is a continuous line of ambulances with new patients here. All the doctors who see these patients have only one room with 2 beds to rest and there are no separate toilets for male and female doctors.
When a resident doctor was spoken to here, he said that the emergency department is relatively safe. Patients sometimes shout and attack them, but there is a guard to take care of it. The female resident doctor said that I feel comparatively safe in the emergency department. There is a guard there. Sometimes patients come and shout at us or attack us, but apart from that, the emergency department is better. During the night shift, we stay inside the hospital. We do not go out. We rest and eat in the doctor’s duty room. There is only one DDR with two beds. This is a problem. There is no attached washroom inside. There is only one room for male and female doctors.
Source (PTI) (NDTV) (HINDUSTANTIMES)