FOUL TOILETS
Exhausted doctors sleep where they can, snatching rest on a chair or the floor.
“They are just completely tired and their bodies cannot push anymore,” Radhika said.
There are restrooms for doctors – but men and women have to share, and some have no lock.
She described one moment of terror when two men barged into the room as she rested.
“I was really scared,” she said.
Foul sanitation – including often one toilet for male and female medics – illustrate a failure by the authorities to provide basic infrastructure.
The situation was particularly worrying when the women were menstruating, Radhika said.
In the Himalayan territory of Kashmir, doctor Rubeena Bhat said some medics would rather use washrooms in houses neighbouring the hospital.
“It’s that bad,” she said.
“ABUSE EVERY DAY”
One female doctor in Thiruvananthapuram, a city in the southern state of Kerala, said she and her colleagues faced abuse every day, from verbal insults to physical molestation.
“There is no end to it,” she said.
Female doctors have been encouraged to participate in self-defence classes organised by the medical association.
“Doctors are called gods or angels by some people,” the Kerala-based doctor said.
“So we think we are immune to crimes. And when such a crime happens at a place which we consider the safest place, we are all afraid.”
But while questions remain over her safety, Radhika is certain of her future.
“I will fight and continue to be in the healthcare service,” she said.
