Section 144 invoked tocounter nurses’ strike

Source: http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/kerala/section-144-invoked-tocounter-nurses-strike/article19289722.ece

Nursing colleges told to deploy students to hospitals hit by stir

Invoking the power under Section 144 of the Criminal Procedure Code (Cr.PC), District Collector Mir Mohammed Ali on Sunday issued an order in his capacity as the District Magistrate directing the Principals of nursing colleges in the district to deploy their nursing students to various private hospitals affected by the ongoing strike by the nursing staff demanding wage hike.

In what is viewed as a step to counter the nurses’ strike in various private hospitals in the district, Mr. Ali ordered the Principals of eight nursing colleges in the district to suspend the classes of students, except that of the first-year students, for five days from July 17 to 21 so as to deploy them to the hospitals. The order also listed the number of students to be deployed in the hospitals which also included government hospitals.

The nurses in some of the private hospitals in the district have been on strike over the past 18 days. The magisterial order of the Collector said that the deployment of nursing students was an alternative arrangement as the indefinite strike of nurses in private hospitals from July 17 would severely affect healthcare service delivery.

The order also noted that major hospitals here were reportedly operating at less than 50% of their capacity and were forced to direct patients to government hospitals that were currently functioning at a level considerably higher than their sanctioned strength.

The order said that as “the healthcare infrastructure in the district is already stretched under the burden of water-borne diseases after the onset of the monsoon, the crippling of services at important private hospitals is putting the lives of patients and potential patients at grave risk.”

Moreover, the overcrowding of patients suffering from communicable diseases in government hospitals could lead to a major public health crisis, the order said.

As per the order, the managements of the hospitals would provide transportation facility, food and remuneration in the form of incidental expenses to students at the rate of ₹150 a day each. The District Police Chief would provide necessary protection for the transportation of the students from colleges to hospitals.

Police personnel would be deployed at the hospitals to prevent obstruction of work. College faculty would supervise the students in the hospitals and send daily report to the District Magistrate, the order said.

Students who abstained from ward duty would face disciplinary action, including dismissal, from the course, it said. The order said that action would be initiated by the police against those obstructing the implementation of the order.