The death of the 24-year-old medical student, Dr Samidha Khandare, has led the Maharashtra Association of resident Doctors (Mard) and Observer Research Foundation (ORF) together with health activists and NGOs under the banner of Civil Society Alliance against TB-Deaths, to launch a weeklong commemoration, to spread awareness and “pressurise the government” to pay greater attention to tuberculosis (TB).
Dr Khandare succumbed to multi drug resistant TB (MDR TB) on Sunday after a six-month long battle with the disease. Currently, there are about 20 doctors across the state afflicted with TB, with 15 in Sion Hospital alone. The commemoration week will begin on July 8 and continue till July 14 across the state. In the week, Mard said, it would launch an exhaustive awareness campaign and blood donation drive, which will finally culminate with a solidarity walk from Grant Medical College, Gymkhana to National Centre for Performing Arts (NCPA), Marine Drive.
Mard maintained that it is the poor living condition of the resident doctors, lack of amply nutritious food, and irregular work hours, which makes them susceptible to the disease. “Our living condition, poor diet, and irregular, unregulated working hours together make us vulnerable to an infectious disease like TB. If we, the caregivers, are at risk then let alone patients. The administration must ensure better amenities and facilities for us,” said Dr Santosh Wakchaure, president, Mard.
Mard is also going to observe a black day in the weeklong commemoration, by wearing black mask on duty in hospitals across the state, informed Dr Wakchaure.
Dr Deepesh Reddy of ORF said, “TB remains one of the most abjectly ignored diseases in the city of Mumbai, despite the fact that there have been over thousands of deaths in the city, and over 10,000 across the state. We need to have a holistic approach to tackle the disease.”