A Decade Apart: The Unchanged Challenges of Indian Medical trainee doctors

THE HORRIFYING RAPE AND MURDER OF A TRAINEE DOCTOR AT RG KAR MEDICAL COLLEGE AND HOSPITAL NOT ONLY BROUGHT OUT THE LACK OF SAFETY BUT ALSO THE HORRIFYING WORK CONDITIONS THEY FACE. WHEN I REFLECT ON MY INTERNSHIP DAYS, ONE MEMORY STANDS OUT: A GRUELING 7-DAY CONTINUOUS DUTY IN A DEPARTMENT OF A LEADING PRIVATE HOSPITAL IN INDIA. DURING THIS TIME, I WAS TASKED WITH CHALLENGING DUTIES FOR A CONTINUOUS 156 HOURS. DESPITE THESE HARDSHIPS, THERE WERE ALSO MANY HAPPY AND MEMORABLE MOMENTS THROUGHOUT THAT YEAR.

- DR. DANIEL S. DAVID

In India, the internship— known as the Compulsory Residential Rotatory Internship (CRRI)—is a one- year training period after medical school. Interns rotate through major departments to gain experience and earn their medical license.

After completing my medical studies in Ukraine and passing the Foreign Medical Graduate Examination in India, I joined a prestigious medical college for my internship. Excited to start, I knew little of the challenges that lay ahead.

My First Posting: Dept ‘O’

Assigned to the department ‘O’ for a month, we were two interns rotating duties. This meant picking up the duty phone at 7 a.m., working nonstop until 7 a.m. the next day, handing over the phone, continuing to work during the day, and finally resting around 6 p.m. The cycle repeated the next day, effectively making it a 36-hour duty. The real test came when one of us had to attend a week-long palliative care training, leaving the other to handle a 7-day continuous duty alone.

During those seven days, I was responsible for:

• Sending blood samples early in the morning.

• Arranging blood for surgeries.

• Preparing the ward for grand rounds, including updating investigation sheets and ensuring hand sanitizers were at each bedside.

• Preparing PowerPoint presentations on medical topics - for which I got an appreciation I still cherish

• Responding to frequent calls from residents and ward staff.

• Running to the casualty ward to assist with patient procedures.

• Transferring instruments and arranging blood for night surgeries.

• Inserting urinary catheters, and acting as a liaison between staff and residents.