PGIMER Chandigarh is set to make regular dialogue with its residents a permanent part of how the institution runs. Director Prof Vivek Lal has called for structured and periodic interactions so that concerns about workload, stress, workplace well-being and other issues are identified and addressed in time.
The announcement came during an open interaction between Lal and around 200 residents, held as part of an Orientation and Well-being Programme.
PGIMER Resident Welfare: What the Director Has Asked For
At the centre of the plan is a simple instruction. Heads of Departments (HoDs) and faculty guides must hold regular interactions with residents at a fixed periodicity. This is meant to make communication and early resolution of concerns an integral part of the institution's support system.
In other words, the dialogue is not meant to be a one-time event. It is to become a routine practice, built into how departments function and how faculty guides stay in touch with the young doctors they supervise.
Why Resident Well-Being Matters at PGIMER
Lal linked the well-being of residents directly to the care that patients receive. Speaking at the programme, he said:
"Resident well-being is integral to patient care. We must create an environment where our young doctors feel heard, supported..."
The focus areas named in the announcement are workload, stress and workplace well-being. These are the issues the new system of periodic interactions is expected to bring to the surface and resolve early, rather than letting them build up.
The programme itself brought together around 200 residents with the Director in an open format, allowing concerns to be raised directly.
Our Take: A Welcome Step That Must Be Followed Through
In our view, the value of this announcement lies in the word "institutionalise." A single open interaction with 200 residents is a good start, but it is still just one event. What PGIMER is now promising is different — a fixed, repeating process where HoDs and faculty guides sit down with residents on a set schedule.
To put it plainly, the success of this plan will depend on whether the interactions actually happen at the promised periodicity, and whether the concerns raised lead to action. If residents speak up and nothing changes, the exercise will lose its purpose. If concerns about workload and stress are heard and addressed early, the system will earn the trust it needs to work.
For residents, this news means there is now a formal channel for their problems — not just an annual meeting, but a routine they can count on. For patients, it matters too, because the Director's own words make the link clear: doctors who feel supported are better placed to provide good care.
The direction is right. The follow-through is what readers, residents and the institution should now watch.
