The National Task Force to make recommendations to ensure doctors' safety on duty is discussing threadbare every issue related to the medicos' workplace experience, a member of the panel has told NDTV. He also said every hospital must have an internal complaints committee to tackle problems faced by women healthcare staff.
Dr Saumitra Rawat, chairperson of Institute of Surgical Gastroenterology at Sir Ganga Ram Hospital in Delhi, is a member of the task force that was set up by the Supreme Court in the aftermath of a 31-year-old doctor's rape and murder at Kolkata's RG Kar Medical College and Hospital on August 9.
The 10-member task force met for the first time yesterday. Dr Rawat yesterday's meeting saw a detailed and elaborate discussion regarding the issues faced by doctors. The task force, he said, was focusing on two main aspects -- how to prevent violence against medical professionals and how to prepare a protocol for dignified and safe working conditions for doctors. "We had a point-by-point discussion. We have also given suggestions and recommendations of various associations to the Health Ministry," he said.
The Supreme Court judgment, he said, details how doctors can be provided a safe and dignified working environment. "Baggage should be screened, there should be security to manage crowds, adequate restrooms should be there, so should be biometric and facial recognition systems and the number of hours doctors are looking into also needs to be looked into. We discussed every point."
At Ganga Ram Hospital, he said, there are roughly 300 security personnel. "We have on-call duty rooms, we are the largest postgraduate trainee centre for National Board of Examinations. These are things where HODs, deans and directors need to be proactive so that such an horrendous incident does not happen again," he said.
Dr Rawat said the panel will prepare an interim report in the next two-three weeks.
While doctors' 'no safety, no duty' protests have been suspended in Delhi, medicos in Kolkata are continuing their agitation. On what doctors can expect from the task force, "What I can assure the doctors is that all of us in the task force are working very hard to ensure prevention of violence and provide a safe workplace to them."
On whether Internal Complaints Committees will be set up in hospital to tackle violence against women healthcare staff, he said, "That would be one of the points, internal committees should be there to tackle problems of women junior doctors. These panels will have a significant number of women doctors so that juniors can directly approach the committee if the head of the institution are not listening."
Besides senior doctors, the National Task Force comprises the Cabinet Secretary, Home Secretary, Health Secretary, chairperson of National Medical Commission and president of the National Board of Examiners.
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