SC-Constituted Task Force On Safety Protocol Of Doctors Set For First Meeting On Tuesday: Report

The Supreme Court-appointed National Task Force (NTF) will meet on Tuesday to create protocols for the safety of doctors and other healthcare professionals in response to the recent incidents of violence.

The Supreme Court-appointed National Task Force (NTF) will hold its first meeting on Tuesday to develop a protocol for ensuring the safety and security of doctors and other healthcare professionals, news agency PTI reported sources as saying. The 10-member task force was established by the apex court last week after it took suo motu notice of the alleged rape and murder of a trainee doctor at Kolkata's RG Kar Medical College and Hospital. This incident triggered widespread protests, including by healthcare workers, disrupting medical services.

The Supreme Court specified that the cabinet secretary, home secretary, health secretary, National Medical Commission chairperson, and the National Board of Examinations president would serve as ex-officio members of the task force.

The task force includes Surgeon Vice Admiral Arti Sarin, Director General (Medical Services, Navy); Dr. D Nageshwar Reddy, Chairman and Managing Director of the Asian Institute of Gastroenterology and AIG Hospitals, Hyderabad; Dr. M Srinivas, Director of AIIMS-Delhi; Dr. Goverdhan Dutt Puri, Executive Director of AIIMS Jodhpur; Dr. Pratima Murthy, Director of the National Institute of Mental Health and Neurosciences, Bengaluru; and Dr. Saumitra Rawat, Chairperson of the Institute of Surgical Gastroenterology, GI and HPB Onco-Surgery, and Liver Transplantation, as well as a member of the Board of Management at Sir Ganga Ram Hospital, New Delhi.

Additional members include Professor Anita Saxena, Vice-Chancellor of Pandit B D Sharma Medical University, Rohtak; Dr. Pallavi Saple, Dean of Grant Medical College and Sir JJ Group of Hospitals, Mumbai; and Dr. Padma Srivastava, a former professor at the Department of Neurology, AIIMS-Delhi.

Supreme Court Directs NTF To Create Action Plan

Last Wednesday, the Union Health Ministry also issued a memorandum outlining the Terms of Reference (ToR) for the NTF. The ToR tasks the NTF with developing effective recommendations on the safety, working conditions, and well-being of medical professionals, among other related issues.

The Supreme Court directed the NTF to create an action plan under two main sub-headings: 1. Preventing violence, including gender-based violence, against medical professionals and ensuring safe working conditions, and 2. Preventing sexual violence against medical professionals.

The NTF will also consider implementing baggage and person screening systems at all hospital entrances to prevent weapons from being brought into medical facilities and to prevent intoxicated individuals from entering, except in the case of patients, PTI reported.

Regarding infrastructure development, the ToR calls for separate resting and duty rooms for male and female doctors and nurses in each department, as well as a gender-neutral common resting space. The NTF is to also explore the possibility of establishing police posts within medical facilities, based on the facility's footfall, bed capacity, and services.