NHRC issues notice to Punjab govt over GNDH doctors’ attitude

The NHRC has issued a notice to the Punjab government over reports that doctors and senior staff of a hospital in Amritsar are not doing their lawful duty to attend to patients sincerely, officials said on Friday.

The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has observed that the content of the media report, if true, amount to a violation of the human rights of the patients and a matter of its concern.

The NHRC, in a statement, said it has taken suo motu cognisance of a media report that the doctors and senior staff of the Guru Nanak Dev Hospital (GNDH), Amritsar, are not doing their lawful duty sincerely to attend to patients.

“Most of them habitually leave the patients at the mercy of the housekeeping and training staff and depart early. Reportedly, it is also alleged that the patients are subjected to ill-treatment and threatened that they will be discharged if any complaint is made against them,” it said.

Accordingly, it has issued a notice to the chief secretary of the government of Punjab, seeking a detailed report in four weeks. It should also include the steps taken or proposed to be taken to address the issue raised in the news report as well as action taken against the doctors and the staff found guilty in the matter, the statement said.

According to the media report, carried on May 17, it takes hours to give prescribed medicines and injections to a patient by the nursing staff of the hospital, it said. PTI