Mumbai: A first-year resident doctor at civic-run Sion Hospital was found dead by suicide in his hostel bathroom around 7.30pm on Saturday. Hospital officials said he was a surgery resident and had earlier complained of a heavy workload.Dr Shivsharan Patil, a first-year junior resident, was a native of Karnataka.On Saturday, when his whereabouts were unknown for several hours, his roommate was asked to look for him. “When he called his phone, he heard it ringing inside the bathroom and alerted the senior authorities,” said a senior doctor from the hospital.Security guards were then called in and the door was broken open. Hospital authorities said that while there were complaints regarding workload in the past, none had reached them over the last couple of months, as the workload in the deceased doctor’s unit had lessened.Dr Patil was found with an injectable medical device. The hospital has not yet been informed of a suicide note by the Sion police. However, police have registered an accidental death report.Meanwhile, the hospital has contacted his family, and his body will be handed over to them after a post-mortem. While National Medical Commission’s (NMC) rules state that no resident may work beyond 48 hours a week, this is seldom followed within hospital settings.Past data from the Nagpur govt Medical College showed that one trainee logged more than 540 hours in a single month. At least 25 resident doctors have died by suicide over the last few years.Maharashtra Association of Resident Doctors (MARD) representative Dr Rutuja Raut said the association is collecting larger data on suicide by resident doctors due to heavy work pressure and will submit it to NMC.Need help? Contact, Tele-MANAS, 14416 or 1800-891-4416. TISS icall: 9152987821
