HealthCare at HOME launches the ‘#DoctorsDayOff’ Campaign

Doctors are healers. They give hope to many and to some a new lease of life. But what most of us tend to forget is that doctors are also humans. Long working hours, sacrificing family life and personal interests are all inevitable in a doctor's life. They shoulder enormous responsibilities daily and are still expected to do more. Doctors often advise us to take rest to restore our health. Isn't it time we ask them to try their own medicine for a change?

 To celebrate the contributions of this noble profession in a special way, HealthCare atHOME (HCAH) has launched the ‘#DoctorsDayOff’ campaign starting from 30^th June 2017. This unique drive will kick off in various HCAH partner hospitals across Delhi and Punjab.

 As part of the campaign, posters in the form of Do Not Disturb door knobs will be hung on the doors of the doctors’ chambers in hospitals. These creatively designed door knobs have compelling messages like, “Every doctor needs a family-time. One day a week, I won’t disturb, I promise”.

 In addition, Facebook and Twitter profiles of HCAH will use the hashtag #DoctorsDayOff to spread awareness about the importance of the campaign.

 “We wanted to show our gratitude to doctors by helping them take some time off for themselves. Physicians and surgeons not only make themselves available to their patients 24x7, but also have to constantly engage in academic learning to keep themselves abreast of the latest medical developments. This leaves them with hardly any time for themselves or their families. They deserve a break more than anyone else.” says Vivek Srivastava, CEO & Co-founder, HealthCare atHOME (HCAH).

 Dr. Gaurav Thukral, Senior Vice-President and Business Unit Director, HCAH “A medical career is both rewarding and highly demanding however studies have shown that all around the world about 80 per cent of doctors don't take sick leaves for illnesses for which they otherwise recommend patients to stay home. As a doctor, our sole aim is the well-being of our patients. To achieve that on a day-to-day basis takes enormous amount of dedication and professionalism. When you see, you’re making a difference in someone’s life, all the sacrifices seem worth it. But doctors do tend to overstretch themselves doing their duties. Therefore, we feel that the ‘Doctors Day Off’ campaign will be much appreciated by the medical fraternity. As doctors, we can provide the best for our patients only when we ourselves are at our own best.”

The expectations from doctors are extremely high. If a person in another profession is unwell, he will take a sick leave from work to visit a doctor. But if a doctor is unwell, there is very little chance that he will do the same. Apart from making sure that patients are not caused any inconvenience, doctors hardly ever take days off so as to not disrupt the schedule of the hospitals and put the extra burden of patients on another already overworked colleague.

 While doctors have infinite patience and stamina, they too suffer the risk of a burnout. This can have serious consequences on their health causing both physical and emotional exhaustion. Therefore, it’s time we understood that just like us, doctors too require some downtime to unwind. For any emergency, we can be rest assured a doctor will be there to provide medical assistance. But we should also learn to withhold from calling on them for every trivial matter.

 HCAH’s ‘#DoctorsDayOff’ campaign, therefore, raises this critical but less voiced issue. Our indomitable doctors will never stay down on their own, so it’s also up to the patients to ensure that they appreciate their physicians by allowing them to take some personal time off.