The Indian Medical Association (IMA) has called for an indefinite strike of doctors from April 2 against the National Medical Commission (NMC) Bill, 2017. More than 600 doctors under the aegis of Indian Medical Association (IMA) participated a “mahapanchayat” at the Indira Gandhi Stadium on Sunday to protest against the NMC Bill and the parliamentary standing committee report on it.
The NMC Bill seeks to allow practitioners of Ayurveda and other traditional medicine to practice modern medicine once they complete a short-term “bridge” course, among other wide-ranging institutional reforms. Doctors are agitated against the National Medical Commission (NMC) bill which seeks to replace the existing apex medical education regulator, the Medical Council of India (MCI). Though the parliamentary committee recently has suggested major changes in the proposed NMC bill, doctors are not contented.
“The changes suggested are cosmetic in nature. Dissolving the autonomous body and appointing the new commission will be against the welfare of the medical professionals. Practising homeopathy and AYUSH in its purest form and not mixing it with modern medicine practise will sustain better healthcare among the masses. The PSC report is deceptive to such an extent that it will open up the floodgates to allow backdoor entry to crosspathy thereby promoting quackery legally. Even after the cosmetic amendments, the core issues still remain where it is,” said the National President of IMA, Dr Ravi Wankhedkar.
Doctors and representatives from all the states were allowed put up their concerns in front of the Mahapanchayat team headed by the national president of IMA.
Dr Vinay Aggarwal, coordinator of Doctors Mahapanchayat emphasised on alleged violence against doctors and insisted that “problems faced by doctors is enough, now it’s time to payback”.
“Violence against doctors and health staff shall not be condoned any further which is somehow interlinked with the lack of infrastructure or healthcare facilities provided by the government. People should understand the actual meaning medical negligence which a doctor never intends to perform false surgery and people should never take the laws in their hands. We also demanded for ‘No criminal prosecution’ for minor clinical errors,” said Dr Aggarwal.
“The NMC is a pro-private management Bill paving the way for widespread corruption. Medical education in the country will become expensive placing the lower socio-economic groups in great disadvantage. Rural healthcare is bound to improve only by starting new Government medical colleges and wisely deploying the medical manpower. Measures initiated by MCI to incentivise the young MBBS graduates with additional marks for PG selection by serving in the rural areas has not yet been accepted by any of the states. This goes to say that all arguments of the Government are hollow and its intention is malafide and harmful,” said Dr R.N Tandon, Secretary General, IMA.
Raising concerns over the setting and opening of new medical colleges, Dr Wankhedkar said “Provisions to open new medical colleges are ambiguous and the provisions to begin PG courses are unregulated. Recommendation to increase the regulation of fee in private medical colleges from 40 to 50 percent does not make a material difference. However lack of clarity on implementation may jeopardise the decision itself,” he said.