Bengal doctors opt for mass resignation

In the wake of cease-work at state-run hospitals in West Bengal, doctors of four Medical colleges on Friday submitted mass resignations.

In a letter to the Director of Medical Education and Ex-officio Secretary, more than 70 doctors of R.G. Kar Medical College submitted their resignations. AAs per informed sources, the number of doctors putting their papers down is rising steadily.

"We the following doctors of R.G. Kar Medical College have so far been trying our level best to run the hospital service smoothly. You are aware that the present situation is not ideal for patient care service," the doctors wrote.

"In response to the prevailing situation, as we are unable to provide service, we the following doctors would like to resign from our duty," they wrote in the letter.

Also, nearly 100 doctors of the NRS Medical College and Hospital - the epicentre of the protests are also opting for resignation, an official revealed.

In a similar letter to the Director of Medical Education, 17 doctors of Medicine Department of Calcutta National Medical College and Hospital have put their papers down. They too cited the same reason that they are unable to provide services in the present situation.

A similar picture was noticed in North Bengal Medical College and Hospital in Siliguri.

"Already 15 senior doctors have submitted their resignation to Director of Medical Education and this figure may rise. It is not possible to carry on the services normally without the junior doctors," Sudipta Mandal, Assistant Superintendent of North Bengal Medical College and Hospital said as the cease work by the Junior doctors of state-run hospital entered the fourth day.

The protest began at the state-run NRS Hospital on Tuesday morning bringing the regular services to a standstill, after a junior doctor was allegedly beaten up by the kin of a 75-year-old patient who died there late on Monday night.

The family members of the deceased patient alleged medical negligence. An intern named Paribaha Mukherjee sustained a serious skull injury in the attack and was admitted in the intensive care unit of the Institute of Neurosciences.

With improvement in his condition, Mukherjee has been shifted to the general bed and will be released from the hospital soon.--IANS

bnd/ssp/rs