Pune: More than 500 resident doctors resumed duties at BJ Medical College and Sassoon General Hospital on Friday after a 10-day strike during which elective surgeries, lab and ward services, and academic activities were halted. More than 900 minor and major surgeries had been postponed and new admissions of patients were put on hold. Dr Eknath Pawar, dean of the college, said, "A total of 84 major and minor surgeries were performed on Friday, and 25 babies were delivered.
This is more than our daily average. The strike has been called off, and so now the routine work can resume in full swing." On Friday, the number of admissions went up to 168 from 105 a day before.
Similarly, the number of patients at outpatient departments (OPDs) jumped to 1,553 from 1,337. The doctors also participated in a day-long blood donation campaign. The Maharashtra Association of Resident Doctors (MARD) on August 13 declared to boycot elective services across all state govt-run medical colleges condemning the rape-murder of a second-year postgraduate trainee at RG Kar Medical College in Kolkata.
One of their demands was implementation of the Central Protection Act. Dr Shivaji Munde, president of MARD chapter at BJ Medical College, said, "Soon after the central MARD announced an end to the strike, doctors rejoined the services from Thursday midnight. We understand the backlog of surgeries and patient cases, and so our doctors have started working with dedication.
Hopefully, the security within the hospitals across the state would be much better, especially for female doctors." Resident doctors assist and performe surgeries and follow up with patients admitted to the hospital. They also attend to patients at OPDs.
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