Taking their protest over the delay in NEET-PG 2021 counselling to the next level, the resident physicians of Dr Ram Manohar Lohia (RML) hospital have decided to boycott all normal services from today, December 3. As a kind of protest, the hospital had already discontinued its OPD services.
“As the withdrawal of OPD services didn’t bring any concrete response from the authorities, due to insensitive response of governing bodies responsible for the delay in NEET PG 2021 counselling, we are compelled to boycott all routine services at RML HOSPITAL (OPDS). Special Clinics, IPDs, Elective OTS) from December 3, 2021, onwards till the time our genuine grievances are not fulfilled,” the letter by the Resident Doctor Association read.
However, all emergency services in the hospital will run as usual. ” If no concrete steps are taken by the stakeholders to ensure immediate completion of NEET PG Counseling 2021, we will be forced to take an extreme and harsh decision of shutting down the emergency services as well and complete responsibility will be on administration and concerned officials,” the letter added.
“This decision has been taken in consensus with the national and state RDAs. A further action plan will be decided in due course after meeting with them,” as per the letter.
“With the possibility of an imminent upcoming COVID wave, it is essential that the counselling process is started at the earliest to prevent the collapse of the health care system and we request all stakeholders and administrative authorities to ensure that the process of induction of new doctors is completed at the earliest,” the letter read.
The OPD services at the Centre-run RML, Safdarjung and Lady Hardinge hospitals were affected for the fifth consecutive day on Thursday as resident doctors continued their protest against the repeated postponement of the NEET-PG 2021 counselling.
A nationwide withdrawal from outpatient department services by resident doctors of many hospitals began on November 27, following a call given by the Federation of Resident Doctors Association (FORDA).