BMA furious over doctor’s character assassination

The Bangladesh Medical Association (BMA) has decided to stand by a “very sincere” and “hard-working” doctor, who is facing a Bangla newspaper’s onslaught over a reported misbehaviour with its publisher.

Daily Jugantor is relentlessly publishing “false and fabricated” stories against Dr Nunjerul Mohsenin Meem, even her personal and family life, after she reportedly misbehaved with its publisher Salma Islam, also a Jatiya Party MP.

Dr Meem is an emergency medical officer of Bangladesh’s busiest emergency facility at the Dhaka Medical College and Hospital.

Islam went there on Tuesday at around 3pm to see a bullet-hit patient of her constituency of Dhaka-1.

She told bdnews24.com that she felt “ashamed” when she was asked why she had been sitting at the doctor’s room.

“I did not go there to sit. I was insisted to sit there by the (hospital) guards. It was an empty room. I was standing at the middle of the emergency.

“Then suddenly she (the doctor) came and told me why you’re sitting here. Who told you to sit here? I felt ashamed.

“There was no crowd at that time. Journalists, TV cameras all witnessed that incident.”

Asked whether she was using her newspaper against the doctor, she said her newspaper was “writing the truth”.

“Jugantor always avoids lies. An incident happened. Now they are publishing the facts,” she said.

“Those who know me, know my behaviour. Even you (journalists) know when I was an editor I never misbehaved with anybody.”

“But nobody speaks good about her (the doctor). Everybody after the incident told us that her behaviour is very rude. And we are publishing this”.

Dr Meem did not make any comment to bdnews24.com when approached. She said she would speak through her authorities.

But her boss at the emergency, residential surgeon of casualty unit Dr KM Reaz Morshed told bdnews24.com that this issue was settled immediately in presence of the hospital director.

“She (Salma Islam) crowded the room with her followers (accompanied her). Our doctor did not recognise her first. When she knew her identify, she politely told her to sit at the director’s room. But her followers were enraged first because the doctor could not recognise her, and then for requesting her to sit in another place,” Dr Morshed said.

“You know this is very busy place and we don’t allow anyone to occupy doctor’s room. Doctors’ have to remain busy every time at the emergency,” he said.

Morshed said Dr Meem said “sorry to her later, but it seems her followers were not convinced”.

“Jugantor is publishing all the false and fabricated stories. Even they are lying about the DMCH, saying that we don’t treat patients, we refer them to private hospitals”.

He said a statement by the hospital authority signed by the assistant director had been sent to the newspaper where “we contested those reports”.

Dr Meem again said “sorry if her behaviour hurt her (Islam) in the same statement”.

Dr Morshed, however, dismissed Jugantor’s report that Health Minister Mohammed Nasim ordered “dismissal” of Dr Meem.

“This is again false. But we send her for a short leave to avoid press panic. Everyday journalists are coming, and calling her. She is mentally disturbed.”

Following the incident, Jugantor in one of its reports even claimed that her parents-in-law were forced to leave house due to her bad behaviour.

Secretary General of the BMA, national doctors’ body, Prof Iqbal Arslan told bdnews24.com they had “no alternatives” other than protesting now.

“We’re waiting and collecting information. We’re expecting that the issue will die down. But it went far beyond control. Now we have to protest,” he said.

The BMA will form a human chain on Sunday at Central Shaheed Minar as a first step.

He said this doctor was “a very sincere and good manager in the emergency”.

“She is hard-working,” he said, “You cannot tarnish one’s image this way.”

Arslan said they got the details information from the hospital authorities.

“They (Jugantor) are publishing all the concocted stories. They are assassinating her character. Even the newspaper did not receive hospital’s rejoinder,” he said.

The BMA secretary general also rejected any claim that Dr Meem was dismissed. “There is no scope for that,” he said.

Salma Islam was however not bothered about the MBA protest.

 “They can do whatever they want,” she told bdnews24.com.