Resident doctors, who are on the warpath for the past one week in solidarity with medical students who boycotted entrance exams held on March 13 and 14 for post graduate studies in medicine, will stay off the hospital from Tuesday. [break]
According to Manoj Kumar Poudel, the president of Free Students Union (FSU) at TUTH, resident doctors will work only till Monday. “No resident doctor will work from Tuesday so as to further press our demands,” Poudel told myrepublica.com.
At present, a total of 247 MBBS doctors are at TUTH as resident doctors to accomplish their three year M.D. (Doctor of Medicine) and M.S. (Master of Surgery) courses. With TUTH resident doctors´ new announcement, one of the country´s largest government hospitals will almost come to a halt. Only 100 faculty doctors will be on their duties.
According to Dr Karbir Nath Yogi, the president of Nepal University Teachers Association (NUTA), Maharajgunj chapter, TUTH will virtually remain paralyzed once resident doctors stop their services. “Faculty doctors will not be able to treat all the patients,” Dr Yogi said.
According to TUTH administration, over 3,000 patients visit its Emergency Ward and Outgoing Patients Department (OPD) every day. Besides, the 600-bed indoor ward always remains packed.
A large group of students, doctors and hospital employees of TUTH have been demanding the resignation of the dean of the Institute of Medicine (IoM), Dr Arun Sayami, accusing him of leaking questions in the entrance exams.
They have demanded a fair probe into the alleged irregularities by Dr Sayami and the cancellation of the entrance exams as well. Nepal Medical Council (NMC) has already invalidated the controversial entrance exams and recommended to the Tribhuvan University (TU) to scrap it.
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