Don’t move alone on campuses at night: Sr docs caution nurses, female staffers
Times of India | 13 August 2024
Kolkata: The rape and murder of a PGT doctor atRG Kar Hospital has prompted senior doctors and nurses to issue unofficial safety advisories over WhatsApp groups, asking woman doctors and nurses to refrain from moving alone on their respective hospital premises at night. The advisories also asked the young doctors and staff to move in groups post 11pm.They were asked to avoid staying alone in desolate rooms of the hospitals. They were also advised to ensure the doors are bolted while resting off duty.
“ In case one cannot travel in a group, we have asked them to be accompanied by security guards,” said a senior nurse at SSKM Hospital.
At NRS Hospital and Calcutta Medical College and Hospital — which have large unmanned stretches, mostlydesolate after 10pm — female students have been instructed to avoid such spots and walk along populated portions of the hospital. Security guards have also been asked to make frequent rounds of such desolate areas and ensure women doctors or nurses do not have to tread alone.
Similar advisories have also been charted for residents living in hostels within or outside the hospital campus.
“Female students and nurses have been asked to ensure doors and windows are bolted and check if the entry-exit gates are properly closed. We realise it was a one-off incident at RG Kar, but there is no harm in taking precautions and ensuring safety,” said a doctor at NRS Hospital.