Feud With patients' Attendants
Interne docs on strike at Barisal SBMCH
Treatment at Barisal Shere Bangla Medical College Hospital is facing disruption as Internee doctors started undeclared strike on Monday afternoon and gave ultimatum to start an indefinite strike from today if their four-point demand is not met.
On Monday, condition of patient Nurul Huq deteriorated for not giving treatment and seeing assaults of his family members in front of him.
Turmoil at the hospital began on Monday afternoon when Nurul Huq, 80, discharged from SBMCH died at Ambia Memorial Diagnostic Hospital, a private clinic of the city, on Tuesday morning.
Hospital authority claimed Nurul Huq was not forcibly discharged, but released after he was recommended for sending to Dhaka for better treatment.
Sher-e-Bangla Medical College academic council and Hospital authority after jointly holding an hour-long meeting decided to talk with the internee doctors association.
In a meeting yesterday noon, internee doctors placed four-point demands including arrest and lodging case against the attendants of the patient for 'attacking' internees, ensure safety and security of the doctors on duty, permanent police camp and regular patrol of Rapid Action Battalion, and allowing only one attendant per patient admitted in the hospital.
The internee doctors also declared ultimatum to start strike sine die if their demands are not be fulfilled within 9:00am today.
General patients alleged that SBMCH health service depends on unskilled internee doctors and they always became hostages in the hands of them.
SBMCH is the only specialized public hospital of southern region and senior specialist doctors instead of giving treatments of poor general patients this hospital remained busy with private practice and clinic business.
Nurul Huq, 80, of Battala area of the city was admitted at medicine unit of Barisal Shere Bangla Medical College Hospital on Saturday in a critical condition.
After admission, he was given no treatment and internee doctors on duty in that ward did not attend him even after informed about displacing of his feeding and oxygen pipe on Sunday night, said the patients' attendants and other patients.
When senior doctor Golam Mahmud Selim, chief of the unit, visited the ward on Monday morning, the patients' attendants complained to him about not giving proper treatment and attending the patient.
At that time accompanying internee doctor Sajjad Hossain engaging in an altercation with the attendants of the patients and physically assaulted Siraj, son of the patient, in front of the unit chief, alleged Siraj.
After ending ward visit of the unit chief, internee doctor Sajjad came to the ward with his associates and tried to abduct Siraj at about 11:00am on Monday, said eyewitnesses.
Ripon, Miraj, Firoza, Shashi, brothers and sisters of the patient and other attendants were injured as internee doctors beat them up after closing collapsible gate when they tried to prevent abduction bid, they said.
Hospital director Dr Golam Mawla rushed to the spot and with the help of police and senior doctors, rescued the victims.
Meantime, internee doctors handed over Siraj and Miraj to police. The two brothers were later released.
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