Thiruvananthapuram: The Kerala government on Friday issued an order cancelling the night duty of house surgeons in rural hospitals.
The order will be effective till a safety audit is completed at all hospitals to ensure the security of medicos. The decision was taken by Health Minister Veena George after a discussion with house surgeons and doctors pursuing post graduation.
The minister also assured that a guideline detailing the duties of house surgeons will be published at the earliest.
After the government agreed to most of their demands, the protesting doctors are expected to report for duty in emergency services from 5pm in the evening, PG Association representative Dr EA Ruwais said.
Future protest plans will be decided after a meeting in the evening.
Government doctors had withdrawn their strike following the Chief Minister's assurance on Thursday. Kerala Government Medical Officers Association (KGMOA), however, stated they would refrain from performing VIP duties until the decisions are implemented.
In the wake of widespread protests by doctors over the killing of a young doctor while on duty by a man in police custody a day ago, the Kerala government on Thursday decided to issue an ordinance to ensure the safety of healthcare professionals in hospitals.
The ordinance to amend the Kerala Healthcare Service Persons and Healthcare Service Institutions (Prevention of Violence and Damage to Property) Act, 2012 would be introduced in the next cabinet meeting, a statement issued by the Chief Minister's Office (CMO) said.
It was decided that police outposts would be set up in all major hospitals in the state, the statement said.
A majority of doctors had not reported to work in the past 24 hours, demanding that the government bring out new legislation for the protection of hospitals with immediate effect. The functioning of hospitals was largely hit across the state due to the agitation by medical students and doctors.
Intensive Care Units (ICUs) and casualties were exempted from the stir, but the Out Patient (OP) services in the state hospitals were affected.
