The resident doctors at medical college and hospitals in Tamil Nadu have started protesting against the delay in NEET PG counseling and admission due to the union government′s indecision over the Economically Weaker Section (EWS) seats. The resident doctors have started withdrawing outpatient department (OPD) services from today.

V Vignesh from TN Resident Doctors′ Association said that the new batches of doctors were unable to join hospitals because of the delay in the counseling. The current batch of resident doctors were already overburdened as they were working for 18-hour without adequate leaves. They were working continuously without juniors and performing maximum work in medical college hospitals including surgeries and services to COVID-19 patients. This has caused severe stress and fatigue in the middle of the pandemic among the resident doctors which was adversely affecting their health.

80% of the resident doctors are in conventional treatment wards and the rest are assisting COVID patients, but it could change if any new variant is detected. So the TNRDA has requested the state health department to take up the issue seriously and allow admissions of new batch of doctors at the earliest. Meanwhile resident doctors in other Indian states have already begun the strike stressing similar demands.

Source: The Times of India