VIMSAR Director Withdraws From Surgical Practice

Sambalpur: Following protests over his treatment methods, Veer Surendra Sai Institute of Medical Sciences and Research (VIMSAR) director Aswini Pujahari on Friday said that he would withdraw from surgical practices.

He mentioned this in a letter to the head of Surgery Department of VIMSAR.

Pujahari was the in-charge of Uni-I of the department.

“Since the probe committee raised questions over my treatment methods, I decided withdraw from surgical practice. But I will continue as the director. The demands of junior doctors have been met and they should join duty now,” he said.

Notably, videos of Pujahari using table salt and tabla therapies had earlier gone viral on social media.

Despite him withdrawing as the in-charge surgeon, the Junior Doctors’ Association (JDA) is in no mood to relent from its demand for his ouster as the director of VIMSAR.

The junior doctors had been on a cease-work stir opposing his treatment methods and given the state government a 48-hour ultimatum for his removal from the post of director. They had threatened to intensify the stir if their demand was not met.

The JDA claimed that the cancer patient of Chhattisgarh, whose surgery was conducted by Pujahari using table salt at the affected place, had died. The doctor, however, refuted it.

“My method of treatment was right. His health condition is stable now and he will come to VIMSAR again,” Pujahari said.

He also drew flak for his administration methods and conducting experimental surgeries on poor patients without their consent and approval of the ethics committee.

The JDA had also filed a police complaint against him.