• Kolkata doctor rape-murder: Health secretary appeals to doctors to resume duty, says OPD, emergency services hit
    Indian Express | 14 August 2024
  • With resident doctors of all medical college hospitals in West Bengal ramping up their protests and staying away from work following the rape and murder of a junior woman doctor at R G Kar Medical College Hospital in Kolkata, state Health Secretary Narayan Swaroop Nigam on Tuesday held a press conference appealing to resident doctors to return to service.

    “The state government condemns the gruesome incident and assures that proper investigation will be done in this case. However, it is being seen that patient services have been affected in many hospitals across the state in the last few days due to the absence of resident doctors from OPDs as well as emergency departments,” said Nigam.

    “Some of the patients requiring emergency care are not getting timely services. We immediately appeal to the resident doctors that they must return to their services considering the commitment shown by the state government towards proper investigation of the case as well as towards ensuring the safety and security of the resident doctors,” Nigam added.

    “The government upholds the dignity of our medical professionals in the highest order and we request that normalcy in the patient services be restored immediately,” Nigam further said.

    “The commissioner of Kolkata is personally supervising the investigation and a Special Investigation Team (SIT) has been formed. We will ensure the highest possible punishment for the culprits. The parents of the victim girl are also being regularly updated on the progress of the investigation,” said Nigam.

    The principal secretary and the police commissioner met the agitating doctors and assured them that a proper investigation would be carried out.

    “The CM has gone personally to meet the unfortunate parents and assure them that proper investigation will be done. The principal and MSVP of RG Kar Medical College have been replaced. It is to reiterate that the government is doing everything to ensure proper investigation,” he said.

    With junior doctors and resident doctors of all medical college hospitals boycotting emergency and non-emergency duties, OPDs have remained shut across West Bengal, with a handful of senior doctors manning emergency services.

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