Mumbai: Maharashtra state government employees stage a protest outside The Cama & Albless Hospital on the first day of a 3-day strike over pending demands including implementation of the 7th Pay commission outside Maharashtra Mantralaya, in Mumbai on Tuesday, August 7, 2018. (PTI Photo/Shashank Parade)(PTI8_7_2018_000175B) Mumbai: On the first day of the 3-day state-wide agitation by Class 3 and Class 4 government employees, hospitals were virtually paralysed. All routine operations and surgeries had to be postponed. Hospitals had to resort to Plan B — asking medical and nursing students to provide the necessary assistance to patients and their families. Owing to lack of manpower, Sir Jamshedji Jeejeebhoy (JJ) Hospital may have to postpone routine surgeries for three days – the duration of strike. Doctors were only attending to emergency patients.
Mukund Tayade, Dean of JJ Hospital, said, “Around 2,600 employees of the hospital have joined the strike, owing to which we have stopped routine operations. Only emergency operations are being performed. We have in place 240 nurses from the hospital’s nursing institute and arrangements for 30 temporary sweepers, private drivers for ambulances and Home Guards.”He added, “All our undergraduate and postgraduate students will be at work. They will also take care of food distribution in wards. Lifts will be operated automatically. We have made all the necessary arrangements if the strike goes on for the next two days. Until the strike is over, doctors will work for 24 hours in every ward and their respective departments. We have also asked all heads of departments to work for 24 hours on a rotational basis so that patients are not affected.”
On the first day of the strike, only 26 emergency operations were carried out at the hospital and 2,904 patients were examined on Outpatient Department basis at JJ Hospital. “There was 60 per cent decrease in the Inpatient Department as only 655 patients were admitted, as against 1,500 on a daily basis,” said Dr Sanjay Surase, medical superintendent. Government employees from St George Hospital too have been protesting against government policies since Tuesday morning. Dr Madhukar Gaikwad, Medical Superintendent of St George Hospital, said, “Around 650 employees from our hospital have gone on strike. As a result, doctors have been asked to help patients in wards,” he added.