Kolkata doctor rape-murder: Patients suffer as OPD services at Delhi govt hospitals hit due to doctors’ strike

Patients seeking consultations at various Delhi government hospitals on Monday were turned away as doctors initiated an indefinite strike, demanding enhanced safety measures following the rape and murder of a resident doctor in Kolkata.

The strike has caused significant inconvenience, especially for those who travelled from nearby NCR towns like Ghaziabad, Gurugram, and Faridabad, arriving as early as 5 a.m. to secure their place in line.

Mohammad Vakil, who came to LNJP Hospital from the Badarpur border, shared, “I arrived early in the morning with issues in my ears.”

“I was advised to return after a week as the doctors are on strike and to monitor the news for updates on when the strike might end,” said the 24-year-old patient.

Resident doctors from multiple hospitals in Delhi, including AIIMS, RML Hospital, and Safdarjung Hospital, have joined the indefinite strike, responding to a call from the Federation of Resident Doctors’ Association (FORDA) after a postgraduate trainee doctor was raped and murdered at RG Kar Medical College in Kolkata while on duty.

The strike has impacted several hospitals across the national capital, leading to the closure of OPDs, operation theatres, and ward duties. However, emergency services will continue to function, ensuring that urgent patient care is not disrupted.

Also Read: Kolkata doctor murder: Delhi hospitals to halt elective services from Monday to demand justice

Lovekush, who brought his 55-year-old father Subhash Singh, a tuberculosis (TB) patient, said, “My father suffers from TB. As the sole breadwinner in my family, I have to manage everything, and today was wasted. We’re going back home without any check-up.”

Ram Kripal, who travelled from Gandhi Nagar to GTB Hospital for a respiratory issue, also had to return home without being seen due to the OPD closure.

Meenakshi, another patient from Sundar Nagri, had fluid in her abdomen and was scheduled for a test. However, the strike left her without medical attention.

“Doctors are not attending to patients because of the strike. The day was wasted,” she lamented.

Among the major hospitals participating in the strike are Maulana Azad Medical College, RML Hospital, Lady Hardinge Medical College, VMMC and Safdarjung Hospital, Deen Dayal Upadhyay Hospital, Institute of Human Behaviour, Atal Bihari Vajpayee Institute of Medical Sciences and Allied Sciences, Dr Baba Saheb Ambedkar Medical College, and the National Institute of TB and Respiratory Diseases Hospital.

(With inputs from PTI)