The reality of hospital-acquired infections is one that is difficult to ignore. New research has spotlighted one particular infection to which hospital visits can expose people. This time, alarm bells are being sounded about Clostridium difficile (also known as C. diff), a bacterium linked to stomach ailments such as diarrhoeal disease and colitis which can […]
doctors
India’s shortage of specialist doctors is still staggering
July 1st marked Doctors’ Day – and while the occasion was an opportunity to thank the medical professionals who work to ensure good health, it also was a bitter reminder of the public health crisis India is facing. The government has put a figure to the mammoth medical staff shortage India is battling. The new […]
The ongoing war of words over doctors’ strikes in West Bengal
![Mamata Banerjee (Bengali: মমতা বন্দ্যোপাধ্যায়; Hindi: ममता बनर्जी, pronounced [mɔːmoːt̪ʰaː bɛːnaːrjiː]; born 5 January 1955) is the 11th and current chief minister of the Indian state of West Bengal. She is the first woman to hold the office. Banerjee founded All India Trinamool Congress in 1997 and became chairperson, after separating from the Indian National Congress. Currently she is also in charge of nine key departments of the government of West Bengal, including Home, Health and Family Welfare, Land and Land Reforms, Information and Cultural Affairs, Minority Affairs and Madrassah Education, Agriculture, Power and Home (Personnel and Administrative Reforms) departments. She is popularly referred to as "Didi" (meaning elder sister) to all her followers. This photograph has been taken during the inauguration of the 'Infocom 2011' exhibition at Milan mela ground, Kolkata.](https://i2.wp.com/www.healthissuesindia.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/800px-Mamata_Banerjee_-_Kolkata_2011-12-08_7541.jpeg?resize=150%2C150&ssl=1 "The ongoing war of words over doctors' strikes in West Bengal")
What began as an agitation in West Bengal is poised to become a national movement, as the Indian Medical Association (IMA) calls for a doctors’ strike on Monday over safety at work. A severe attack on an intern at the NRS Medical College and Hospital in Kolkata resulted in the ongoing stir. Exhortations and threats […]
Protests and strikes against violence towards doctors after Kolkata attack
Doctors across India will organise protests and strikes today in support of a medicos’ stir in West Bengal. Thursday witnessed the third day of the doctors’ strikes in the state which was triggered by an attack on Dr Paribaha Mukherjee, an intern at the Nil Ratan Sircar (NRS) Medical College and Hospital in state capital […]
Ill health is killing more Indians than terror. Time to change priorities?
Ill health deaths: 97 percent. Terror deaths: 0.007 percent. Let us first take a moment to digest the headline. “The two issues that took significance and helped the BJP return to power were national security and Hindu nationalism, with claims that both are under threat by unforeseen powers. The reality is different: people are dying […]
Raising the retirement age of doctors
Punjab has announced it may raise the age at which government doctors may retire in a bid to address the state’s shortage of doctors. The doctor-patient ratio in Punjab was actually ranked as one of the best in India in September last year. The Times of India reported that Punjab had one medico for every […]
Why your doctor’s lab coat could be bad for your health
When we think about doctors, the white lab coat is often one of the first things that come to mind. In fact, many of us do not feel comfortable seeing doctors who dress without them. Yet this symbol of the medical profession may be a breeding ground for deadly bacteria. New research suggests that the […]
Relationships between doctors and patients are unethical
Sexual relationships between doctors and patients are unethical, even if consensual or instigated by the patient, the Medical Council of India (MCI) has declared. Adopting and publishing guidelines outlined by the Indian Psychiatric Society (IPS), the MCI said relationships between medicos and patients – past and present – should be discouraged and violate tenets of […]
The Indian doctor struck off by a UK high court
A British high court has upheld a decision made last year to bar an Indian doctor from practising in the UK for alleged medical malpractice while he was working in Mumbai. Dr Pantula Sastry was held to account by the London High Court for his role in the death of a lymphoma sufferer in July […]
India facing shortage of surgery trainees
India’s shortage of surgeons could get worse in the coming years, new government data suggests. The number of medical trainees studying to become surgeons is declining. Of 2,029 surgery seats in super speciality courses for the 2018-19 academic year, 189 went unfilled. Super speciality courses are those for which candidates have to clear National Eligibility-cum-Entrance […]