Prevention of violence against medical professionals and providing safe working conditions
A. Ensuring due security in medical establishments
1. triaging departments and places within the hospital based on the degree of volatility and the possibility of violence areas such as emergency rooms and intensive care units are prone to a greater degree of violence and may possibly need additional security in place to deal with any untoward incident
2. a baggage and person screening system at every entrance of the hospital to ensure that arms are not carried inside the medical establishment
3. preventing intoxicated persons from entering the premises of the medical establishment unless they are patients, and
4. training security Personnel employed hospitals to manage crowds and grieving persons
B. Infrastructural development
1. provision of separate resting rooms and Duty rooms in each department for a. male doctors b. female doctors c. male nurses d. female nurses and e. a gender neutral common resting space; the room must be well ventilated have sufficient bed spaces and provide a facility for drinking water access to these rooms must be restricted through installation of security devices
2. adopting appropriate technological intervention to regulate access to critical and sensitive areas including through the use of biometric and facial recognition
3. ensuring adequate lighting at all places in the hospital and if it is a place, if it is a hospital attached to a Medical College, all places within the campus
4. installation of CCTV cameras at all entrance and exit points of the hospitals and the corridors leading up to all patient rooms, and
5. if the hospitals or rooms of the medical professionals are away from the hospital provision of transport between 10: p.m. to 6:00 a.m. for those who wish to travel to or from their place of stay to the hospital
C. Employment of Social Work workers trained in grief and crisis counseling at all medical establishments
D. Conducting workshops for all employees of medical establishments including doctors nurses and helpers on handling grief and crisis
E. Constitution of employees’ safety committees composed of doctors, interns, residents, and nurses at every medical establishment to conduct quarterly audits on institutional safety measures
F. Including additional requirements on institutional safety measures for medical professionals as a criteria for accreditation of healthcare establishments by the national accreditation board for hospitals and Healthcare Providers, and
G. The possibility of establishing police posts in medical facilities commensurate with the footfall, bed strength and facilities
II. Prevention of sexual violence against medical professionals
A. the sexual harassment of women at workplace prevention prohibition and redressal act 2013 applies to hospitals and nursing homes including Private health care providers in terms of the provisions of the ACT an internal complaints committee must be constituted in all hospitals and nursing homes
B. the duties of an employer listed under section 19 of the sexual harassment of women at workplace act 2013 which includes organizing sensitization programs and providing a safe working space must be discharged, and
C. ensuring for every Medical Institution a helpline number for medical personnels which is open 24x7 and emergency distress facilities.
It is clarified that the phrase ‘medical professionals’ used in this judgment encompasses every Medical Professional, including doctors, medical students who are undergoing the compulsory rotating medical internship as a part of the M.B.B.S. course, resident doctors and senior resident doctors and nurses including those who are nursing interns. The phrases medical establishments, hospital, medical institutions are interchangeably used.
The National Task Force (NTF) has been granted the liberty to make recommendations on all aspects of the action plan, as well as any additional areas its members deem necessary to cover. They are also permitted to make further suggestions where appropriate. The NTF will propose suitable timelines for the implementation of these recommendations based on the existing facilities in hospitals. The task force is required to consult all relevant stakeholders during this process.
In light of the gravity and urgency of the situation, the court has included the heads of the National Medical Commission and the National Board of Examinations as ex officio members of the NTF. Given the national concerns raised over the issue and the high priority for creating safe working conditions in healthcare institutions, the court has requested the Cabinet Secretary of the Union Government to associate with the work of the NTF. Additionally, the Home Secretary of the Union Government has been made a member to ensure proper coordination with state governments. The Secretary to the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare of the Government of India will serve as the Member Secretary of the NTF, and the ministry will provide logistical support, including arrangements for travel, accommodation, and secretarial assistance, as well as covering the expenses of the NTF members.
The Court has directed the NTF to submit an interim report within three weeks and a final report within two months from the date of its order.
The Court has also instructed all state and Union territory governments, through their respective Health and Family Welfare Secretaries, as well as the Central Government, through the Secretary of the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, to gather detailed information from all hospitals under their jurisdiction on the following aspects:
A. how many security Personnel are employed at each hospital and each department
B. whether there is a baggage and person screening mechanism in place at the entrance of the medical establishment
C. the total number of resting / duty rooms in the hospital and specific details of the number in each department
D. the facilities provided in the resting / duty rooms
E. information on whether all areas of the hospital are accessible to the general public and if so with or without any security restrictions
F. whether there are CCTV cameras in the hospital; if there are how many and in which locations
G. whether the institution provides medical professionals training to appropriately handle the grief of patients; if so the details of the training must be provided
H. whether social workers who specialize in handling grief of families of the patients are employed at the hospital; if so then total number of social workers may be provided
I. whether there are Police Outposts within the premises of the hospital or the Medical College Hospital campus
J. whether an Internal Complaints Committee in terms of the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act 2013 has been constituted, and
K. whether the employer of the establishment has discharged the duties prescribed by section 19 of the Act of 2013; if so the details of it
The Court has directed that the collected data be tabulated and submitted with an affidavit by the Union Government within one month from the order. Additionally, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has been ordered to file a status report by August 22, 2024, on the progress of its investigation into the crime at R.G. Kar Medical College Hospital. The State of West Bengal has also been asked to submit a status report by the same date regarding the investigation into the acts of vandalism that occurred at the hospital following the incident. The matter is scheduled to be listed for further hearing on August 22, 2024, as per the Court's order.
Source: SMW(Crl) No. 2/2024, IN RE: ALLEGED RAPE AND MURDER INCIDENT OF A TRAINEE DOCTOR IN R.G. KAR MEDICAL COLLEGE AND HOSPITAL, KOLKATA AND RELATED ISSUES, Supreme Court of India, August 20, 2024 | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C8Coa0YhJ9w
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