IMA Observes Nationwide Black Day Protest Against NMC Draft Bill
Mangaluru: IMA Mangaluru Organised a Candle Light Protest at IMA House Mangalore on 1 Jan 2018 as part of Black day Protest against the NMC Draft bill presentation in Parliament as part of the Nationwide Protest.
All doctors closed their OPDS, A Memorandum of demands was submitted to DK DC on 2 Jan 2018 by IMA President Dr K R Kamath, Secretary Dr Ullasa Shetty, Zonal Coordinator Dr Anayya Kulal, Past President Dr Raghavendra Bhat, EC Member Dr Prakash Harischandra, Dr Sachidanand Rai, Dr GK Bhat and Dr Sudheendra Rao were part of the delegation to Meet the DC. An emergency Fax was sent to MP Sri Nalin Kateel to convey the Message urgently to the Honorable Prime Minister.
To
Sri Narendra Modi
Hon’ble Prime Minister of India
Government of India
New Delhi, India
Dear Sir,
Subject: Where is Indian Healthcare heading? A time for honest introspection and appeal to stop passing the proposed National Medical Commission Bill.
In refererence to the above; we would like to bring to your notice that in the current assembly the bill to abolish the prestigious Medical Commission of India which was established in the year 1956 and to replace it with the National medical commission is being proposed. We wish to express our serious concerns against such an act as if passed would be fatal to the Indian health care system.
If there were some corruption due to the fault of some individuals how appropriate is to determinate an institute founded on solid democratic principles, that too with an unsystematic one? The change which brings about progression would any day be welcomed by the medical profession but the one that corrodes the existing system, the one which destroys the fine balance of the Doctor-patient relationship shall be strongly opposed, as eminent in the proposed bill. Any desired change could be brought to the existing body by incorporating suitable amendments.
The failing of National Medical commission have been enlisted and highlighted in the annexure. The proposed act would seriously compromise the quality of medical education at the same time dispiriting the upcoming generations of medical professionals.
The proposed commission has only 5 elected members of the total 64 and the rest are all nominated or bureaucrats. It is a grave blow to the democratic foundation and ensures the deterioration of the quality of medical education through individuals who could be the puppets of ruling party.
Currently our state government retains the power to fix the fee for 80% of the medical seats which would be reduced to 40%, as per the new commission which makes medical education unaffordable to the weaker sections of the society, If a bright students chances of getting deprived of an opportunity to study medicine increases can we consider this as a desirable change?
According to the proposed Commission, there is a provision to train doctors of AYUSH and other streams for few days and make them legally eligible to practice Allopathy, With due respect to other streams we strongly oppose this concept as it is against humanity and against the poorer sections of the society. How could we say that because we are running short of qualified allopathic doctors who are made as result of enormous hard work and a lengthy scientific academic training, the society is treated by individuals trained in a compromised manner? That too these quickly trained doctors would be posted to rural areas to care for the masses. Is it not an insult and discrimination towards the less affording sections of society? If implemented the deaths and morbidity due to medical mishandling are bound to play with the lives of the poor for the sake of administrative ease? These questions need an honest answer.
So, we urge you to consider these issues from the point of larger interest of the society and to go through the serious issues raised in the following pages. We request and appeal to you to stop this bill from being implemented and to uphold the integrity and welfare of the health care systems of the nation.
