‘Patients Need Grievance Redressal’

Dr Avishek Layek, 25, a junior resident at NRS Medical College was actively involved in the doctors’ strike in Kolkata. He says the attack on a doctor was only a flashpoint, the discontent was simmering for long

What would you do if a shopkeeper sells you a defective food item and you fall sick after consuming it? Would you go and beat up the shopkeeper? Or will you go through consumer grievance redressal channels and file a case at the consumer court? Most sane people would choose the latter. No?

Unfortunately, in cases of medical negligence, the absence of a patient grievance redressal system leaves people without any options. This leaves, us, the doctors, vulnerable to attacks from aggrieved relatives of patients. What happened at NRSMCH on June 10 was not something new. The incident at our hospital sparked a movement that created ripples across the nation. It wasn’t just the junior doctors (as reported by some sections of media and government) who were agitated and involved in the strike. The movement got support from the people, who work at the grassroots level — be it Aasha workers or the paramedics.

Everyone is a part of the public health delivery system in the country lend their voice to the movement. And the reason for this overwhelming support stems from the fact that the entire medical fraternity is frustrated with the current system.

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I was actively involved in the movement and was part of all the meetings that took place between the doctors and representatives of the state and central government. Our objective was not to paralyse the healthcare delivery system of the state, but we wanted to bring to attention the pathetic conditions in government hospitals. Better patient care services is the need of the hour, which will in return assure a safe, healthy workplace for doctors.

Certain sections tried politicising the issue by giving it a communal colour. Sections of the media, social media and government aver that the movement took this leviathan shape only because one doctor was seriously injured. Some people even said that we were enjoying a week off. This is not true. The movement raised genuine issues that struck a chord with every health worker/ doctor, who was agitated with the current state of affairs in the healthcare system. Beating up doctors has become a norm, which needs to be changed.

Increasing salaries of junior doctors or reducing the long work hours are some pressing issues that need to be dealt with, but we deliberately left out those issues during our talks with the government. For doctors, ensuring better care for patients is of utmost importance and is our primary demand. A doctor’s education is never complete, we learn everyday by treating patients. And thus, it is crucial to create an environment where patients can trust doctors and have faith in the public health delivery system. If there is a mishap, the patient party must have a dedicated place where their grievances are addressed.

Right now for cases of medical negligence, the only way the patient party can register their grievance is by filing a case in the court. These cases tend to go on for several years, as a result people refrain from approaching the court. In fact, none of the law colleges in India have dedicated courses on medical law and ethics. The easiest way out for the aggrieved party is to beat up the doctors.

Another important issue we raised was about security in hospitals. All hospitals must hire a private security agency. In times of crisis, such as the incident that occurred at NRS, we feel rather helpless and vulnerable. Railways have their own railway police, border areas have BSF. Industries have CISF, but government hospitals have been royally ignored in this aspect.

We, doctors, constitute one percent of the population and we have to cater to 100 percent of the population, of course, that leaves room for error. Doctors do not want to play God. We humbly accept that there can be fault at every level. But is it wise to resort to violence in response to a human error?

So far, we were successful in raising these issues both at the state and national level. We have got assurances, now we need to see how they are implemented.