Doctors' Day: Meet doctors who treat poor free of cost
From running street clinics to giving free-of-cost treatment to the poor, many doctors in old Delhi's Chandni Chowk are going beyond their line-of-duty to serve people. A team of three doctors even set up a street clinic near Baptist Church to tend to poor every morning before going to their work. Here's how the doctors are treating the needy for free every day.
About National Doctors' Day
National Doctors' Day is marked today across the country to recognize the contributions of physicians to individual lives and communities. In India, it commemorates the legacy of legendary doctor and former West Bengal CM Bidhan Chandra Roy, who was born on this day in 1882.
Who started the street clinic in old Delhi?
The street clinic, run for the last few years in Chandni Chowk, was started by three doctors and an army officer. The clinic has surgical equipment, medicine, and sterilizing agents to deal with varying degrees of injuries, besides treating diseases, said army officer Premjit Singh Panesar serving in Mathura. Panesar's father had started the initiative and he comes here to check on the clinic.
NGO Delhi Tuberculosis Association also offers services for poor
Delhi Tuberculosis Association, an NGO, also offers services to people in this part of the capital city by setting up mobile testing units. "We have vans which carry equipment. Our doctors run tests for people living on the footpath, for tuberculosis, diabetes, and HIV (AIDS). They also give out nutritional food like eggs, along with medicine to aid the treatment," said Secretary-General SM Govil.
India's doctor-population ratio less than WHO standard
India doesn't even have one doctor for every 1,000 people in the country, which is very less than the World Health Organization's standard. This information was shared by the government in Lok Sabha in July last year. The WHO prescribes a doctor-population ratio of 1:1000.
Other doctors who treat patients for free
Leena Sharma, a homeopathic practitioner in Nangloi, said she treats patients for free on a daily basis. The Jain Bird Hospital in Chandni Chowk treats injured birds, not only free-of-cost but also ensures they are released back into their habitat post-treatment. On an average, 50-60 birds are admitted to the hospital daily and it tends to almost an equal number of birds every day.
