Dr. Rijal calls for equal 2-day holiday for doctors

KATHMANDU: The Nepal Medical Association (NMA) has welcomed the government’s decision to implement a two-day weekly holiday but has simultaneously demanded that the same provision be extended to doctors and healthcare workers.

Senior orthopedic surgeon and chief consultant at the National Trauma Centre, Professor Dr. Badri Rijal, said the move is essential to address rising mental and physical fatigue and burnout among medical professionals.

Although the government recently decided to cut fuel consumption by declaring Saturday and Sunday as weekly holidays, the Ministry of Health and Population has instructed hospitals to continue outpatient (OPD) services on Sundays, creating what doctors describe as inconsistent implementation.

Dr. Rijal argued that government decisions should be applied equally across all sectors.

He warned that varying rules across hospitals regarding holidays and working hours have created confusion and administrative disorder, urging the government to immediately engage stakeholders in dialogue.

“We are working in unsafe environments with limited facilities. If doctors are further pressured, we will be compelled to launch protests,” he said.

He also highlighted that doctors in emergency services remain on 24-hour on-call duty, often being called into hospitals at any time, even during personal and family moments, without proper compensation for additional time and labor.

Dr. Rijal raised concerns over what he described as discrimination between administrative and medical staff, noting that administrative officers of similar rank receive benefits such as vehicles and drivers, while doctors are often denied comparable facilities.

He suggested that a two-day weekly holiday could be implemented without disrupting hospital services by adjusting OPD hours (9 a.m. to 3 p.m.) while keeping emergency services operational 24/7. If the government insists on running hospitals seven days a week, he said, medical staffing must be doubled, as current quotas based on decades-old standards are insufficient for today’s population and healthcare demand.

Dr. Rijal also criticized the government’s recent blanket decision to recall seconded medical personnel, arguing that transferring specialists such as neurosurgeons and cardiologists to facilities lacking equipment leads to misuse of expertise and inefficiency in service delivery.

Doctors further expressed dissatisfaction with what they called unsafe working conditions, inadequate infrastructure, and lack of essential equipment. They urged the government to resolve issues through immediate negotiations, warning that continued pressure could lead to increased brain drain from the country’s healthcare system.

The association accused the government of double standards in implementing its holiday policy, claiming that while the decision was justified on fuel-saving grounds, healthcare institutions have been exempted in a way that undermines doctors’ rights to rest and fair working conditions.