Filmmaker launches drive to curb violence against docs

Kishan S S says they are going beyond their call of duty to serve Covid patients

Kishan S wrote and directed a Kannada feature film when he was just nine. It was called ‘Care of Footpath.’

To mark Doctors’ Day on July 1, he has launched a campaign to curb increasing violence against doctors.

He is also busy taking MediMagic, which he describes as a ‘stereoscopic 3D medical learning platform,’ to medical students. The start-up has given away free subscriptions worth Rs 30 crore to 65,000 students, he told Metrolife.

Excerpts from an interview:

What prompted you to
start this initiative?

I have noticed violence against medical staff, healthcare workers and doctors increasing during the pandemic. I have been visiting medical colleges in Bengaluru. Policemen were posted outside wards of critical patients. I visited a friend admitted to a hospital near Kengeri and saw how parents of a child were raging against the medical staff. Covid or not, rage is not appropriate.

What kind of awareness are you planning to create through this campaign?

This initiative started about a week ago. It promotes mental health among medical students.

I have been to OTs, emergency wards and even consulted doctors for my own health. Meeting those working in Covid ICUs moved me. They remove their PPE and are completely drenched in sweat. I met a dentist who was wearing an advanced 3M respirator that created a permanent mark on his face. The stories are never ending. We need to show gratitude in place of anger and violence.

How can the public help
doctors?

We have to understand that doctors work by prioritising the severity of the patient. While they work tirelessly for 12 to 16 hours a day, the least we can do is show some humanity. We can be more aware of the disease. People scam the authorities and take oxygen concentrators as a standby.

How old is your startup
and what prompted you to launch it?

MediMagic was co-founded about five years ago. We are trying to bridge the gap between textbooks and cadavers (dissection).

Unlike school education which has plenty of players providing solutions, medical education has very few.