A law protects doctors, but medicos say not enough

Mumbai: In the wake of resident doctors going on mass leave Maharashtra chief minister Devendra Fadnavis has said in the House there would be total protection for doctors. 

There already exits, however, a law to protect all medical professionals from any kind of violence in the state. The Maharashtra Legislature had passed it way back in 2010, but its weak implementation is a persistent problem. 

Demand for a separate law had first come to the floor in 2006. There were incidents in Mumbai as well as other parts of the state where patients’ relatives attacked doctors. To prevent this, a delegation of doctors had met then home minister R.R. Patil. In response, the state government initiated an ordinance on March 30, 2009. It reads, “For the prevention of the violence against Medicare service persons and prevention of the damage or loss of medical property.” The ordinance was passed as an Act in 2010. 

This law protects all doctors, nurses, medical students, nursing students, para-medical workers, and other workers who directly or indirectly work under medical institutions. It also covers damage to property of medical institutions, medical colleges, laboratories, pathologies, mobile medical units and other related properties, which comes under medical service criteria. 

This Act also defines the nature of violence. It reads, “Any harm, an injury, endangering the life or intimidation, obstruction, hindrance will be prohibited.” 

Causing physical harm to a medical professional is a punishable offence and offenders face a jail sentence of up to three years and a fine of Rs 50,000 under the Act. The fine varies on the nature of the harm done. 

However, some doctors feel the law has been proven a failure “In the last three years alone a total of 45 cases have been registered under the Doctors’ Protection Act, but not a single case has reached the final stage,” said Dr Yash Kabra, president of Maharashtra Association of Resident Doctors (MARD).

Dr Kabra also demanded an increase in offenders’ prison sentence to seven years.