'Need airport-like security in hospitals': IMA makes 5 demands for doctors' safety

NEW DELHI: Indian Medical Association (IMA) put forward five demands including a central law for doctors' safety after the brutal rape and murder of PG student at RG KAR Medical college and hospital.

IMA's demands
The demands are as follows:

1. At policy level the reluctance to acknowledge the violence on doctors and hospitals has to change. A Central Act incorporating the amendments of 2023 in the Epidemic Diseases Act of 1897 into the draft Hospital Protection Bill of 2019 would strengthen the existing 25 state legislations. An Ordinance as in during the covid pandemic is in order.
2. The security protocols of all hospitals should be no less than an airport. Declaring the hospitals as safe zones with mandatory security entitlements is the first step. CCTVs, deployment of security personnel and the protocols can follow.
3. The 36 hours duty shift that the victim was in and the lack of safe spaces to rest and adequate rest rooms warrant thorough overhaul of the working and living conditions of the resident doctors.
4. Meticulous and professional investigation of the crime in a timeframe and rendering of justice. Identify the hooligans of vandalism and award exemplary punishment.
5. Appropriate and dignified compensation to the bereaved family commensurate with the cruelty inflicted.

The Indian Medical Association (IMA) has announced a 24-hour withdrawal of services by all modern medicine doctors across the nation. This strike will commence at 6 am on Saturday, August 17, and continue until 6 am on Sunday, August 18. Emergencies and casualty services will remain operational, but there will be no outpatient department (OPD) services or elective surgeries during this period, according to IMA press release. The IMA is organizing this withdrawal while "asking for the understanding and support of the nation in this struggle for justice for its doctors and daughters."
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