Kerala state tightens law to protect doctors from violence

The southern Indian state of Kerala has approved new legislation to provide stronger protection for doctors and healthcare workers after state-wide protests over the murder of Vandana Das, a 22 year old house surgeon who worked at the Kottarakkara taluk hospital.

In the early hours of 10 May Das was stabbed four times by a patient she was trying to treat, sustaining deep and fatal wounds. Local news reports indicated that the patient was a drug user who was in therapy for addiction at the time of the attack.

Das’s death comes just two months after 60 year old cardiologist PK Ashokan sustained injuries after a glass counter was smashed at Kerala’s Fathima hospital by relatives of a pregnant …