Memo to PG medicos for refusing 'VIP duty'

CHENNAI: Postgraduate students of Madras Medical College (MMC) who boycotted 'VIP duty' at the Raj Bhavan were on Monday issued a memo by the Rajiv Gandhi government general hospital. But when the students' body threatened to go on strike, they were promised that no penal action would be initiated.

While students alleged 'ill-treatment' and violation of rules, governor's secretary R Rajagopal, whose mother was the 'VIP patient', said he did not ask for anyone to be posted. Rajagopal told TOI: "An unnecessary controversy is being kicked up. I have hired staff from two private hospitals to take care of my mother." A student asked: "Since when are government doctors posted at people's homes? They did not let the doctor on first shift leave till very late at night because he didn't have a replacement."

We were forced to boycott VIP duty: PG anaesthesia students

The student said, “The official vehicle did not even drop the doctor back.”

The GH first received call from the Raj Bhavan dispensary a few weeks ago about Rajagopal’s mother admitted to the dispensary on the Raj Bhavan campus. The dispensary is attached to the GH.

After visiting her, GH doctors suggested that she be moved to the hospital for intensive treatment.

“She was here for weeks and we gave her good care. But her family decided to move her home and continue care. Doctors here too did not object. So, she was discharged,” said GH medical superintendent Dr Narayanaswamy.

The hospital management decided they would post first and second year postgraduate medical students on duty as the patient required non-invasive ventilation frequently.

“Normally, we post professors to care for VVIPs such as the President or the Prime Minister. For medical care of the governor, we post assistant professors as per protocol. In this case we posted students. Later, they objected to it,” he said.

Head of anaesthesiology department Dr Anuradha Swaminathan, who signed the duty allotment register on Monday for two shifts — 8am to 6pm, and 7pm to 7am from February 25 to March 2 — issued a memo to postgraduate and super-specialty students a few hours later for refusing to report for duty at the Raj Bhavan.

The memo said some others had failed to report to the theatre.

Postgraduate anaesthesia students said they were forced to boycott the ‘VIP duty’, as it was not on campus. In a letter to Dr Swaminathan, they said: “Our postgraduates are being ill-treated and we feel unsafe to go and work in such an ambience.”

Students, on condition of anonymity, said: “We have been doing VIP duty on campus for 2 months. We even went to the Raj Bhavan when we were first posted. We thought we had to go to the dispensary, but we were posted at the guest house, instead. The ventilator too was from GH. To make things worse, we were ill-treated.”

Dr Swaminathan said the duties were cancelled and the doctors were back in wards and theatres. “It is an internal matter, but everything is solved now.”

Dr Jayakumar, president of the MMC students council, said: “The department should not have posted PGs on that job. Second, they were posted to a person’s residence because they felt she was a VIP, though that person doesn’t figure on the VIP list as per state protocol. Students were bullied into following a roster that was not even legal. We hope this never happens again.”