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Visuals from the spot showed black smoke billowing out of the windows, above the emergency ward of the AIIMS. File photo

Doctors slam 'special' medical care services for Parliamentarians at AIIMS

The Federal
20 Oct 2022 3:47 PM IST  (Updated:2022-10-20 11:11:14)

Doctor associations are protesting over special medical care treatment arrangements being made by All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in Delhi for Parliamentarians – the sitting MPs of Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha. The special arrangements will include providing a nodal officer to coordinate and facilitate medical care arrangements for the MPs.

On Monday (October 17), AIIMS director M Srinivas, in a letter to YM Kandpal, joint secretary, Lok Sabha Secretariat, said that duty officers (who are qualified medical professionals) from the department of hospital administration will be available in the AIIMS control 24/7 to coordinate and facilitate arrangements for MPs requiring medical care.

The standard operating procedures (SOPs) have been issued for out patient department (OPD) and emergency consultation, and in-patient hospitalisation of sitting MPs of Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha, added Srinivas, said media reports.

Doctors, however, are against this VIP treatment and criticised the new arrangements.

Dr Rohan Krishnan, the president of the Federation of All India Medical Association (FAIMA), told the media, “We have always been against VIP culture in hospitals, and we stand by that.” He added that it is “disheartening” that an institution like AIIMS is setting such a bad precedent for the country. Every patient in this country deserves good treatment, that includes an MP and also a homeless person, he pointed out.

Also read: AIIMS director issues order on submitting e-files except for confidential ones

Attaching the letter from AIIMS director, the association’s tweet said that on one side, “our Prime Minister Narendra Modi ji says ‘There is no VIP Culture in India!,’ but on the other hand, AIIMS New Delhi director Dr M Srinivas releases a letter to promote VIP Culture! Like past we still stand against VIP Culture!”

While the Federation of Resident Doctors Association (FORDA) tweeted:  “We condemn VIP culture. No patient should suffer at the cost of another’s privileges. That being said, having a protocol to streamline things should not be viewed as derogatory, provided it doesn’t hamper patient care.”

The AIIMS letter said that in case a sitting Member of Parliament requires OPD consultation from a speciality / super speciality department the Lok Sabha/ Rajyasabha secretariat or personal staff of the MP will contact the duty officer and provide him requisite details about the ailment and specialist/superspecialist doctor to be consulted. The landline telephone numbers of the control room and mobile phone number of the duty officer on duty will remain the same irrespective of the person on duty.

The letter further noted, “The duty officer will speak to a concerned specialist or super specialist doctor or head of the department and will fix up a requisite appointment. In case it is so required we can speak to the Chief of Centre or Head of the concerned department as well.”

Also read: M Srinivas appointed Director of AIIMS-Delhi

AIIMS response

After the letter was circulated, AIIMS New Delhi also tweeted: “AIIMS New Delhi has always had a 24×7 Control Room for co-ordination of medical care of patients from all walks of life. Residents and Faculty from Department of Hospital Administration work here to ease logistics and expedite treatment for poorest of the poor.”

AIIMS director M SrinivasAll India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS)doctors protest VIP treatmentFederation of All India Medical AssociationFederation of Resident Doctors Association (FORDA)sitting MPs of Lok Sabha and Rajya SabhaSOPs issuedspecial medical care arrangements for sitting MPs
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