DU Correspondent :
The doctors of BIRDEM General Hospital on Wednesday called off their indefinite work abstention having deprived treatment to patients for long 31 hours.
Besides regular patients a large number of serious patients also visit the specialized hospital regularly from different parts of the country.
Attendants of patients had to stay around the hospital for hours together following doctors’ indefinite strike waiting for an end to the deadlock to get treatment.
The doctors called for strike in protest against assault of some doctors by a police official after a patient died of alleged wrong treatment Sunday night.
Masud, an Assistant Superintendent of Police of
Dhaka Zone, was withdrawn from his duty for his alleged involvement in assaulting doctors, police said.
Healthcare services at BIRDEM General Hospital almost came to a halt, as the authorities did not reopen the outpatient department. No new patient was also admitted due to strike.
About 450 doctors work at the 600-bed multidisciplinary hospital. Its outdoor section, which runs from 8am to 2pm, treats up to 4,000 patients daily.
Only old and emergency patients were however provided treatment at the hospital.
Abul Quasem, an attendant of a patient who come from Dinajpur, told The New Nation that they were not aware of the strike and the patient’s condition was critical. That is why, he had no other way but to come to BIRDEM General Hospital for trearment, he said.
“We remain dependant on doctors when we fall sick. But now the doctors are agitating in the streets depriving us of any treatment facility. Is it legal or ethical?” Abul Quasem said posing a question.
Tofazzal Hossain (55) was helplessly waiting at the hospital’s veranda. He came with his diabetic wife from Kurigram. “We saw a doctor here two months ago. He has asked us to come back. But no one is here now and no one is telling us when to come again,” he said.
Aziz Howlader, a 35-year old diabetic patient, was among those at the hospital’s outdoor section waiting for attention of doctors. “I’ve been coming here in vain for two days. It has been closed since yesterday. No one is saying when it will reopen, he said.
On the second day of the strike, the agitating doctors formed a human chain at Shahbagh intersection for 20 minutes from 12:20pm, creating long tailbacks on all roads around the area.
Prior to forming the human chain, doctors held a press briefing on the hospital premises.
Apart from treatment to emergency and old patients, those admitted at the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) and Coronary Care Unit (CCU) were also provided treatment, Ahmed Salam Meer, a physician of the hospital said at the briefing.
Sirajul Islam, 57, who had long been suffering from diabetes, died at the hospital on Sunday evening.
His relatives assaulted and injured Dr Anowar Hossain, Dr Kalyan Devnath and Dr Shamima Akter of Endocrinology department following Sirajul Islam’s death.
The doctors said one Masud, who identified himself as an Assistant Superintendent of Police of Dhaka Zone, and Babu, who accompanied the police official, assaulted the doctors. Patient’s relatives, however, denied the allegation of assault.
