The government has formed three separate probe bodies to investigate the recent attacks on journalists by doctors at Mitford and RMCH and assault on doctors in BIRDEM by police.
The probe committees have been asked to submit their reports within seven days. The decisions were taken in a meeting of the leaders of journalist and doctor at Ministry of Health in the Secretariat on Tuesday afternoon.
Health Minister Mohammad Nasim chaired the meeting.
The meeting also decided that government would compensate and bear the treatment cost of the journalists who were injured by doctors in Sir Salimullah Medical College Hospital, popularly known as Mitford Hospital in old Dhaka and Rajshahi Medical College Hospital (RMCH) and the doctors who injured in BIRDEM in the city..
In the meeting the health minister expressed his sadness over these incidents.
The meeting decided to open an information cell in every medical college hospital and appoint an information officer to brief the media on any incident.
While talking to the journalists, Nasim said, “We have formed separate probe committees in this regard. Those responsible will be brought to book.” The doctors have been asked to withdraw their strike.””We will soon make a law for the protection of doctors and patients so that such incidents do not take place in the future. We are already working on the draft of the law,” he added.
The minister also requested the doctors not to go on strike for the sake of the suffering patients.
Meanwhile, intern doctors of RMCH have called off their strike after two days, ending the suffering of hundreds of patients, reports our Rajshahi Correspondent.
Their decision came within hours of the health ministry forming a five-member committee to investigate the clashes.
The interns had resumed work a little after 4:00pm Tuesday.
Intern doctors of RMCH on Sunday mercilessly beat up several journalists of private television channels-Jamuna TV and Ekushey TV-when they went to cover news at RMCH Sunday evening.
The clash between doctors and journalists at RMCH left about 10 media-persons and three doctors injured at the hospital premises.
Later, the intern doctors went on strike demanding unconditional apology from the journalists.
In another incident, interns at Sir Salimullah Medical College, popularly known as Mitford hospital, beat up three reporters and videographers of ETV on the hospital premises and smashed two of their cameras Saturday night when they went to report on allegation of poor health service at the hospital.
Doctors in BIRDEM hospital observed work abstention protesting against an alleged assault on their colleagues by the relatives of a patient who died ‘due to the negligence of on duty doctors’.
Besides, intern at Dhaka’s Mitford Hospital are still on strike.
Patients have put up with untold misery with the ongoing strike, resulting in a near-collapse of health services at the hospital.
They had gone an indefinite strike on Monday, immediately after the private television channel, Ekushey TV, filed a case against them for allegedly assaulting its newsmen on April 19.
