Himal Press 
KATHMANDU: The Ministry of Health and Population has said that it has begun implementing the six-point agreement reached with the Nepal Medical Association on September 30.
Issuing a statement on Thursday, the ministry said that it has already tasked its legal division with making the necessary amendments to the Health Workers and Health Institutions Safety (First Amendment) Act of 2022 to implement the agreements reached with NMA.
The ministry signed the agreement with NMA following a series of discussions with representatives of the NMA and other associations of health workers after health workers halted regular services at healthcare facilities, excluding emergency services, in protest of the manhandling of doctors. The health workers resumed their duties following the signing of the agreement.
Additionally, the ministry has said that it has begun the process of aligning the compensation and benefits of doctors, resident doctors, medical officers, and intern doctors with the minimum pay and benefits offered to health workers in government health institutions.
The statement further said that the ministry has entrusted its policy, planning, and monitoring division with the responsibility of forming a task force to investigate the reasons behind the rising incidents of attacks on healthcare professionals and to provide recommendations for their mitigation.
Furthermore, the ministry has sldo decided to convene meetings of the Health Workers and Health Institutions Safety Coordination Committee every two weeks to make the committee more effective.
