Kerala: The Kerala government on Thursday resolved to issue an act to safeguard the safety of medical staff in hospitals in the aftermath of massive doctor protests over the death of a young doctor a day earlier. Doctors ramped up their protests today in an effort to bring justice to Dr. Vandana Das, who was fatally stabbed at a government hospital in the Kollam district on Wednesday morning by a guy who had been brought there by the police.
Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan Calls Emergency Conference
A high-level emergency conference was called by the chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan as a result, and he agreed to enact an ordinance amending the hospital protection statute. According to a statement from the Chief Minister’s Office (CMO), the ordinance to alter the Kerala Healthcare Service Persons and Healthcare Service Institutions (Prevention of Violence and Damage to Property) Act, 2012 would be discussed in the following cabinet meeting.
Police Outposts to be Established in Major Hospitals Across Kerala
According to the statement, it was also decided to establish police outposts in each of the state’s major hospitals. The meeting was attended by the state’s minister of health Veena George, the chief secretary V P Joy, the secretaries of health, law, and medical education, as well as the state police chief, ADGPs, and other authorities. After the Kerala High Court stated that “systemic failure” was the cause of the occurrence that resulted in the death of the young medical professional, the government made its decision shortly after.
Attack on Dr. Vandana Das and protests by healthcare workers
As part of her training, Dr. Vandana Das, an only child of her parents and a native of the Kottayam district’s Kaduthuruthy neighbourhood, worked as a house surgeon at Azeezia Medical College Hospital. She was stabbed multiple times before she eventually died from her wounds. Following the assault on her, demonstrations broke out in a number of hospitals around the state, with doctors, nurses, students, and house surgeons going to the streets. The Kerala High Court, which took up the case earlier in the day, criticised the state government and the police for failing to safeguard the young doctor. The High Court stated that G Sandeep, a school teacher by trade, killed doctor Vandana Das as the result of a “systemic failure” and that it “cannot be brushed aside as an isolated incident.” In order to stop any similar attacks, it instructed state police chief DGP Anil Kant to “ensure that security is provided to all hospitals in the manner that is legally possible.”
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Kerala government takes steps to improve hospital security following doctor’s murder
The court further ordered that adequate protocols be established for how people in custody, regardless of whether they are charged or not, are to be presented in hospitals or before medical professionals, whether as a part of the criminal judicial system or elsewhere. The government decided to strengthen security in hospitals it runs later that evening at a meeting presided over by the chief minister. The hospitals were divided into three categories, the first of which included medical colleges, district hospitals, general hospitals, and women’s and children’s hospitals where police outposts would be set up.
Comprehensive security measures announced for all hospitals
The CMO statement omitted specifics regarding the other two types of hospitals. To create environments where doctors and other healthcare personnel could operate safely, the CMO statement emphasised that all three categories of hospitals should have complete police monitoring, CCTV cameras, and warning systems in addition to police outposts. All hospitals will also undergo a security audit every six months by the health and police departments, who will be overseen by the relevant district collectors. The council also decided to look into the potential of placing two doctors in government hospitals’ emergency rooms at night, according to the statement.
Funeral of Dr. Vandana Das attended by state and federal ministers, Kerala Assembly Speaker
The CM recommended setting up a specific security system for transporting aggressive or accused people for medical examinations. The Kerala Government Medical Officers Association (KGMOA) recommended some of these actions in a letter to the CM for bolstering security at state-run hospitals, including the creation of the law and the installation of CCTV cameras. Thus, following the CM’s declaration regarding the proposed ordinance, the KGMOA dropped their protest. The group of medical professionals had also recommended that armed police be stationed at aid stations that were to be established in hospitals with emergency wards. In addition, it called for the recruitment of more chief medical officers (CMOs) so that there would be two CMOs on duty in such wards during each shift and the implementation of government directives regarding the triage system in such hospitals. Prior to her funeral, a sizable audience gathered at Dr. Das’ home to offer their condolences, including state and federal ministers as well as Kerala Assembly Speaker A N Shamseer. Her mother had to be carried by several people in order to view the body for the final time while her father repeatedly kissed her and clung onto his daughter. Her mother also broke down, and family members had to carry her away.
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