Recognising the safety and well-being of doctors as a matter of national importance, the Supreme Court on Tuesday, 20 August 2024, constituted a 10-member National Task Force (NTF) to develop a protocol for ensuring the safety and security of medical professionals. This decision follows the tragic rape and murder of a trainee doctor in Kolkata.
The court has directed the task force to submit its interim report within three weeks and a final report within two months. A bench led by Chief Justice D.Y. Chandrachud emphasised that the lack of institutional safety norms at medical establishments, particularly regarding violence and sexual violence against medical professionals, is a serious concern. While existing legislation offers protection to medical professionals, the court noted that these laws fail to address the underlying systemic issues that contribute to such incidents.
The 10 members of the task force are:
- Vice Admiral Arti Sarin, Director General of Medical Services (Navy)
- Dr D. Nageshwar Reddy, Chairman and Managing Director of the Asian Institute of Gastroenterology and AIG Hospitals, Hyderabad
- Dr M. Srinivas, Director of Delhi-AIIMS
- Dr Pratima Murthy, Director of the National Institute of Mental Health and Neurosciences (NIMHANS), Bengaluru
- Dr Goverdhan Dutt Puri, Executive Director of AIIMS Jodhpur
- Dr Saumitra Rawat, Chairperson of the Institute of Surgical Gastroenterology, GI and HPB Onco-Surgery, and Liver Transplantation, and Member of the Board of Management at Sir Ganga Ram Hospital, New Delhi
The other members are:
- Professor Anita Saxena, Vice-Chancellor of Pandit B.D. Sharma Medical University, Rohtak, and former Dean of Academics, Chief Cardio-Thoracic Centre, and Head of the Cardiology Department at AIIMS, Delhi
- Dr Pallavi Saple, Dean of Grant Medical College and Sir JJ Group of Hospitals, Mumbai
- Dr Padma Srivastava, formerly Professor in the Department of Neurology at AIIMS, Delhi
The bench stated that the Cabinet Secretary and the Home Secretary of the Union Government, the Secretary of the Ministry of Health, the Chairperson of the National Medical Commission, and the President of the National Board of Examinations will serve as ex-officio members of the task force. The Supreme Court directed the National Task Force (NTF) to formulate an action plan under two main areas: preventing violence, including gender-based violence, against medical professionals, and establishing an enforceable national protocol for dignified and safe working conditions for interns, residents, senior residents, doctors, nurses, and all medical professionals.
"The NTF shall have the freedom to make recommendations on all aspects of the action plan outlined above, as well as any additional areas they consider relevant. They are also at liberty to provide further suggestions as appropriate. The NTF should propose suitable timelines for implementing the recommendations based on existing facilities in hospitals. Additionally, the NTF is requested to consult all stakeholders," the bench stated.
The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare will provide all logistical support for the National Task Force (NTF), including arrangements for travel, accommodation, secretarial assistance, and covering the expenses of the task force members.
The bench also directed that all State and Union Territory governments, through their Secretaries in the Ministries of Health and Family Welfare, as well as the Central Government through the Secretary of the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, must gather information from all state and central government-run hospitals. This information should detail the number of security personnel employed at each hospital and each department.
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The compiled data must be tabulated and submitted with an affidavit by the Union Government within one month of this order. The Supreme Court issued these directions while hearing a suo motu case concerning the rape and murder of a postgraduate trainee doctor at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital in Kolkata, amid widespread protests.
With inputs from agencies
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