The Indian Medical Association (IMA) has written a letter to Union home minister Amit Shah, to strengthen the anti-violence act till the central law is passed, due to the increasing violence against healthcare workers. In spite of the generous sacrifice of the doctor community during the coronavirus pandemic, the ongoing physical, verbal and social media violence is still a complex issue.

Dr Rajan Sharma, the national president of IMA, said that the violence in the hospitals is a matter of great concern. Doctors and nurses getting assaulted in a cruel manner is injustice. The medical fraternity is expecting that the national government would initiate a process for enacting a central law against the violence on doctors and hospitals. They are requesting to initiate action soon.

The IMA, in the letter, also said that the modification will start with deterrence only. A central supervision to states to include the amendments to the Epidemic Diseases Act in their Hospital Protection/ anti-violence Acts would strengthen these Acts, until the central law is enacted.

The doctors body said that behavioural abnormalities of a commercial society, ignorance of limitations, inappropriate expectations, infrastructural and Human Resources constraints, insufficient support systems to meet the cost of treatment, counselling logistics and absence of structured communication, etc. contribute to the civilisational deterioration called violence on doctors and hospitals. A wide-ranging solution to the violence on doctors and hospitals has to be addressed in the security level in their hospitals. These arrangements should be on par with airports.

Dr RV Asokan, secretary general of the IMA said that a larger perspective should be included for sufficient investment in Public Health infrastructure and Human Resources. The doctors body also expressed relief and gladness for Shah as he resumed his routine work and wished good health for him. It thanked him for the expeditious enactment of amendments to the Epidemic Diseases Act 1897 for preventing violence against doctors, hospitals and healthcare staff. They also acknowledged his efforts to acquire parliamentary approval in this matter in the monsoon session.

Source: The Times of India