Docs in Bheri Hospital announce protest programmes

HIMALAYAN NEWS SERVICE

NEPALGUNJ: Doctors at the Bheri Zonal Hospital today announced protest programmes demanding the dismissal of acting Medical Superintendent Dr Narendra Kumar Ray.

Organising a press meet, Hospital Development Committee Staff Union’s Bheri Zonal Hospital Unit Working Committee declared the protest programme putting forth six-point demands to sack the Medical Superintendent.

According to Committee’s chairperson Dr RK Jha, their demands included Dr Ray’s dismissal, investigation of the economic transaction during his tenure, provision of CT-Scan, ICU, dialysis and X-ray services in the hospital, increase of hospital staffs, free treatment for differently-abled and poor patients among others. He also blamed Dr Ray for the failure of hospital during his six months tenure.

Dr Ray transferred specialist physician Dr Prakash Khatiwada and child specialist Dr Binod Khetan from the hospital, he said, adding that Dr Ray paid no heed to solve the hospital problems.

As per the protest programme, doctors will work putting black band in the arm on July 17 and 18. Howver, hospital administration will be shut from July 19, OPD service will halted from July 20 to 24, Indoor Patient Department service will remain shut from July 25 to July 30 and all the services except emergency and indoor departments will be closed indefinitely from August 1 until the demands were addressed.

According to a member of the Hospital Development Committee, Khem Kumari Neaupane, Dr Ray never consulted the Committee and decided everything in the hospital by himself.

Nepali Congress, CPN-UML, Tarai Madheshi Loktantrik Party, Rastriya Prajatantra Party and others supported the doctors and staffs protest at the hospital. Political parties, however, have asked them to rethink about the closure of services.

Hospital’s former Medical Superintendent and Nepali Congress, Banke president Dr Arun Koirala advised the government to take initiative to improve the hospital facilities.

Similarly, Tarai Madhesi Loktantrik Party district shairperson Girija Pathak said the parties should not encourage the protest in the name to improve hospital’s facilities. Dialogue should be the option to solve the problem, he added.

Meanwhile, Rastriya Prajatantra Party’s Krishna Kharel said private clinics and nursing homes’s commission was the major cause behind the deteriorating services in the hospital. Many doctors have been sending patients to the private clinics, he claimed.

Dr Sanket Rijal of the hospital said that they were compelled to stage protest to improve the hospital’s facilities.