‘Where the finality of death is the only, eventual and natural outcome; doctors are bound to make mistakes,’ everyone knows this. Doctors are only people and like everybody else mistakes are inevitable in spite of the best efforts or intentions. Despite all evidence to the contrary, the healing power of doctors is considered second to God’s own miraculous powers when people are suffering from physical or emotional ailments. Standing now on the other side of the pier, I watch with wonder, how so many elementary school goers fancy being doctors. Whether the resolve to materialize this dream fades away or not is a separate issue.
30th March is Doctor’s Day.   The first Doctors’ Day observance was March 30, 1933, in Winder, Georgia. The idea came from Eudora Brown Almond, wife of Dr. Charles B. Almond, and the date chosen was the anniversary of the first use of general anesthesia in surgery: on March 30, 1842, in Jefferson, Ga., Dr. Crawford Long used ether to anesthetize a patient, John Venable, and painlessly excised a tumor from his neck. The United States Senate and House of Representatives passed S.J. RES. #366, which President Bush signed on October 30, 1990 (creating Public Law 101-473), designating Doctors' Day as a national holiday to be celebrated on March 30.
I only found out about Doctor’s Day some years back when a sales representative from a pharmaceutical company greeted me with flowers and wished me a Happy Doctor’s Day sometime in 2009 and the sales team of that company never stopped since then. Media outlets and television channels have started to acknowledge Doctor’s Day as well. It is rather disheartening to see that very few doctors in our country know of the significance of Doctor’s Day.
The sweat and invisible tears which are shed everyday by so many doctors around the country despite wind, snow, storm or hail; on public holidays or on days of personal celebration can never be fully accounted for. The sacrifices doctors are forced to make in the line of duty are immense and the emotional and psychological toll of 24 hour long graveyard shifts are intense and often soul destroying. A single day of acknowledgement at the national level could be a refreshing change.
There are several political organizations for doctors in our country, but not a single one considers Doctor’s Day celebration to be an issue of importance.
It can always be a noble gesture by commemorating the lives of liberation martyrs like Dr Mohammed Fozle Rabbi, Dr Abdul Alim Chowdhury and others. In India, Doctor’s Day is observed on 1st July with full fervor and pomp, in memory of the legendary Dr Bidhan Chandra Roy.
The basic need of workplace safety and security is an ardent cry for doctors around the country. Hospital security is of paramount importance given the fact that violent attacks on doctors and nurses are very common in hospitals around the country.
It is hard for people to restrain their emotions after the loss of a loved one; however in first world countries violence inside hospitals is as illegal as violence anywhere else and that is why effective hospital security is an essential component of all medical facilities. Not a single case of assault, battery or homicide committed against doctors in our country has been properly investigated or prosecuted till date.  
Despite all hardships and heartbreak, I salute the humanity of doctors here and all around the globe. May God bless us all.
The writer is a doctor,
columnist, organiser and social activist. He can be reached at: [email protected]