Natl Med J India
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Violence against doctors is on the rise all over the world. However, India has a unique problem. Meagre government spending on healthcare has resulted in poor infrastructure and human resource crunch in government hospitals. ⋯ Violence against health service providers is only a manifestation of this malady. The Prevention of Violence Against Medicare Persons and Institutions Acts, which have been notified in 19 states in the past 10 years, have failed to address the issue. To prevent violence against doctors, government spending on healthcare must be increased and the Indian Penal Code should be changed to provide for a tougher penalty that could act as a deterrent to violence against doctors.
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Editorial Historical Article
Hepatitis C Virus: Discovery to epitaph in a life-time.
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Healthcare workers particularly doctors are at high risk of being victims of verbal and physical violence perpetrated by patients or their relatives. There is a paucity of studies on work-related violence against doctors in India. We aimed to assess the exposure of workplace violence among doctors, its consequences among those who experienced it and its perceived risk factors. ⋯ A large proportion of doctors are victims of violence by their patients or relatives. Violence is being under-reported. There is a need to encourage reporting of violence and prepare healthcare facilities to tackle this emerging issue for the safety of physicians.