Junior doctors at Hyderabad’s Osmania General Hospital staged a five-hour protest on October 12, demanding urgent repairs to non-functional medical equipment and time-bound action on deficiencies affecting patient care and clinical training.
The protest was held on the hospital premises from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Members of the Osmania Medical College Junior Doctors Association said essential facilities remained deficient, including ventilators, diagnostic equipment and the catheterisation laboratory.
N. Chandrakanth Reddy, president of the association, said several diagnostic facilities and machines had not been working for months. He specifically cited X-ray and endoscopy equipment, in addition to the catheterisation laboratory and ventilators.
“Facilities ranging from ventilators to the catheterisation laboratory are deficient. Several diagnostic facilities and machines, including X-ray and endoscopy equipment, have not been working for months,” Mr. Reddy said, according to The Hindu.
The doctors said the equipment problems were affecting both patient care and the clinical training environment at one of Hyderabad’s major government hospitals. Their demands include repairs to essential equipment and improvements to hospital infrastructure, with clear timelines for implementation.
The protest followed a meeting between the junior doctors’ association and Health Secretary Christina Z. Chongthu a week earlier. Mr. Reddy said the association had not received a concrete assurance in the seven days since that meeting.
“A meeting had been held with Health Secretary Christina Z. Chongthu a week ago, but the association had not received any concrete assurance. We have been waiting for seven days after the meeting, but there has been no proper assurance. That is why we decided to protest,” he said.
The reported deficiencies point to an operational problem beyond the availability of hospital buildings. When diagnostic machines and critical-care equipment remain unavailable, the effect can extend to the timing of examinations, treatment decisions and specialist procedures. The source report, however, does not specify the number of non-functional machines, the duration of downtime for each item, or the number of patients affected.
The doctors have warned that they may intensify their agitation if the authorities do not respond to their demands. Their immediate request is for time-bound action to restore essential equipment and address infrastructure deficiencies at Osmania General Hospital.
No detailed response from the hospital administration or the Health Department on the repair schedule, equipment status or the doctors’ demands was included in the report. The next step is therefore expected to be an official response to the association’s request for time-bound repairs and operational improvements.
