New Delhi: The doctors of many government hospitals over Delhi, including the Lok Nayak Jai Prakash Narayan Hospital (LNJP) and the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) on Friday stretched out support to the protest call given by the Indian Medical Association (IMA). They will be wearing black ribbons during their work hours.
The IMA is protesting against the Centre’s move that permits ayurvedic doctors to conduct different general surgeries which according to the doctors, is an assault on modern medical science.
Adarsh Pratap Singh, president, Resident Doctors Association (RDA), AIIMS stated: “We, alongside the rest of the modern medicine fraternity, oppose government’s move towards ‘myopathy’ by the virtue of its gazette notification from the Central Council of Indian Medicine (CCIM), which allows the PG students of Ayurveda to perform general surgeries.”
The doctors of the LNJP furthermore declared to partake in the strike and demanded the government to pull back the CCIM notice. Dr. Keshave Singh, president, RDA of LNJP said: “We support the indigenous system of medicine. However, we oppose the government’s rule which is legalizing Ayurveda to practice allopathic procedures.”
Doctors from medical universities, general practitioners, government services, specialists, resident doctors, and medical students are joined against the three contentious moves by the Centre, which incorporate the most recent amendment by the CCIM where Ayurvedic postgraduate students could get formal training to conduct 66 kinds of medical procedures.
The doctors trust that the move will support the quackery and the patients’ wellbeing would be undermined severely.
Dr. Adarsh stated: “Modern medicine has evolved throughout the years through evidence-based research, which has ensured both effectiveness and safety. This step will not only encourage already rampant quackery but also undermine the safety of the people. We request the government of India to withdraw this notification immediately.”
Dr. Keshave added to the argument that the procedures AYUSH practitioners would follow are learned by us after years of study and practice. If they (AYUSH doctors) get to follow the procedures, it will endanger the wellbeing of the patients. Many incidents have already been reported in the media which revealed dangerous results of quackery.
The decision by the doctors is in a sequence of protests initiated by the Indian Medical Association against the Centre’s recent actions and policies in the field of health and medical education.
