Service in AGMC disrupted following agitation of junior doctors

Agartala: The hospital service of Agartala Govt Medical College (AGMC) has been disrupted since last evening following a clash between patient party and doctor after death of a persons.

The junior doctors launched agitation demanding security and other amenities. The ceased the work and demonstrated before the principal of the college and superintendent of the hospital alleging that the authority was not serious about their demand and upgrade the service to patient parties.

“Most of the time we have to handle the critical patients because the senior doctors and specialists are doing duty only 10 am to 4 pm. Hardly any senior doctor in major departments are attending patients despite giving calls in the evening and night. The interns and postgraduate students of the college are running the hospital and facing odd situations,” said an agitating doctor.

He alleged that the state government did not provide basic minimum facilities and remuneration for the junior doctors and PG students. Everywhere in the country PG students and intern doctors have been working under the guidance of the specialist doctors but here there is no such system. The government allowed the senior doctors to run the chamber in the evening and there is no action to improve the hospital service, he added.

The patient party alleged that the person was admitted in the medicine department in critical condition but despite repeated calls no senior doctor attended the patient for long time. The junior doctor on duty was puzzled and he could not treat him properly for two hours and finally, he died.

“The doctor was not able to confirm the death and my father was virtually died in front of us in the hospital without treatment. Out of anger, some of our relatives abused the doctors and accused him of non-treatment my father. But immediately the doctor and sisters called the private security guards who manhandled us in front of everyone and whole night we did not get anybody to lodge the complain except police,” said Nirmal Debnath, an accompany of the patient.

However, principal of AGMC Prof K K Kundu in the morning left the station and erring doctors ransacked his quarter. The medical superintendent of the hospital Dr Subrata Baidya said that the hospital administration has been trying to restore the service and the state government ordered enquiry into the incident.

However, the senior doctors also raised arm against the state government alleging that there were not been getting promotion or other basic facilities for long time. The government filled up senior positions of faculties from the outside on contract basis who hardly come here.

The doctors at the rank of associate and assistant professors of AGMC were not getting promotion for last many years despite having all required qualification but they have to run the college and hospital. The MCI had directed all the state government to elevate the qualified medical faculties and stop part-time and contract appointment in senior posts but Tripura government denied it.

“Nowhere in the country the doctor who is treating patient whole day also teaching the medical students except Tripura. Moreover, they have not been getting promotion, good package and perks and even the good amenities in the hospital. So naturally nobody is interested to serve AGMC sincerely,” said a senior teacher of the college.