July 1 is celebrated as National Doctors’ day in India. It’s a day to remember the role that doctors play in our lives, and also a day for the medical professionals to do some introspection as well.

National Doctors day in India is a big awareness campaign offering opportunities to all to get aware about the roles, importance and responsibilities of the doctors. It also advocates that medical professionals come closer and follow the responsibilities of their profession very dedicatedly.

This day is celebrated in the memory of Dr. Bidhan Chandra Roy in order to pay honour to the entire medical profession.

Doctor’s Day in India was established by the Government of India in 1991 to be recognized and celebrated every year on 1st of July as National Doctors day. It is the birth and death anniversary of the most famous physician of India Dr. Bidhan Chandra Roy (Dr. B C Roy). He was honoured with the great Indian civilian award Bharat Ratna on 4^th February in 1961. He was born on 1st of July in 1882 in Patna, Bihar. He had completed his medical graduation from Calcutta and returned to the India in 1911 after completing his MRCP and FRCS degrees in London and began his medical career as a physician in India in the same year.

Later he joined the Calcutta Medical College as a teaching staff and afterward he moved to the Campbell Medical School and then to Carmichael Medical College. He was a most famous physician and renowned educationist as well as a freedom fighter as he joined the Mahatma Gandhi during Civil Disobedience Movement.

Later he became an Indian National Congress leader and then Chief Minister of the West Bengal. He passed away on his birthday, 1st of July in 1962, after 80 years of his service.

In his name, the Dr. B. C. Roy National Award was instituted in the year 1976 to pay honour, respect and tribute. National Doctors Day has been celebrated for years by the government and non-government healthcare organizations in order to get familiar with the doctors’ contributions to society.

Several health organisations and NGOs celebrate the day. A discussion program is organized to discuss about the various aspects of medical profession such as health check-up, cure, prevention, diagnosis, proper treatment of the disease and so many. Rotational medical services by the doctors are also promoted and encouraged in the community for better and healthy social development.

Free medical check-up camps are organized at many health centres and public places by the health care organizations to promote quality medical services without cost among common public.

General screening test camps are also organized to assess the health status, health counselling, health nutrition talks and chronic diseases awareness among poor people and senior citizens. Free blood test, random blood sugar test, ECG, EEG, blood pressure checkups and other activities are organized to tell people about the priceless roles of doctors in everyone lives.

Some of the activities at the schools and college level are also organized for encouraging more students toward the medical profession. Discussion on the medical topics, quiz competitions, sports activities, availing scientific tools to students for the creative knowledge, implementing new and effective educational strategies for making the medical profession strong and more responsible.

On the 1st of July patients greet their doctors by distributing greeting cards, appreciation cards, ecards, giving them bunch of flowers or bouquets, greeting messages through the mails and etc. Special meetings, party and dinner are organized at the health centres, hospitals, nursing homes or at homes by the doctors in order to commemorate importance of day and contributions of doctors towards medical profession.

[contributed by Ashutosh, prepared from material available on the web]

  development, National Doctors Day, World Health Organisation (WHO)