The Indian Medical Association has announced a nationwide shutdown of hospital services for 24 hours, starting 6 am on Saturday. The withdrawal of doctors’ services comes amid public fury over the rape and murder of a trainee doctor at a Kolkata hospital.

The association has made a list of demands, ranging from hospitals being designated as safe zones to a policy to address violence against doctors and hospitals.

The rape-murder of a trainee doctor in Kolkata has sparked widespread protests across the country, including the doctor’s strike. The IMA has also flagged the mob violence that was unleashed at the RG Kar Hospital, where the trainee doctor was killed.

“The RG KAR incident has brought to the fore the two dimensions of violence in the hospital: a crime of barbaric scale due to the lack of safe spaces for women and the hooliganism that is unleashed due to the lack of an organised security protocol. Today both the medical fraternity and the nation are victims,” the association said in a statement.

During the 24-hour strike, all medical services will be non-functional, but essential services will be maintained and casualty wards will be operational, IMA announced.

WHAT ARE THE DEMANDS

The letter includes a total of five demands, most of them concerning the safety of medical professionals. There is a demand at policy level to acknowledge the growing violence against those in the medical sector.

“A Central Act incorporating the amendments of 2023 to the Epidemic Diseases Act of 1897 in the draft Hospital Protection Bill of 2019 would strengthen the existing 25 state legislations,” the association members wrote in the letter.

Other demands include better security measures and facilities for professionals working long shifts, like CCTV surveillance, increased security personnel, and availability of safe resting areas. The association also urged a streamlined and quick investigation into the death of the trainee doctor in Kolkata and compensation for her family.

WHY ARE DOCTORS GOING ON A STRIKE?

The nationwide strike comes in the wake of brutal rape and murder of a 31-year-old trainee doctor at Kolkata’s RG Kar hospital. The association is also protesting against the mob attack and vandalism at the hospital in the wee hours of Thursday.

The trainee doctor was found dead in the seminar hall of the hospital, with autopsy later confirming rape. The rape-murder case sparked outrage and triggered widespread protests by students and members of the medical fraternity.

The Indian Medical Association has flagged the violence against doctors and hospitals and announced 24-hour withdrawal of doctors’ services in protest against the violence.