To All Sikh Medics Inc. Students/ Nurses/ Nhs Workers

[lakhveer singh]

Fateh

Some of you may know that Health Sect Alan Alan Johnson today has announced that in order to help combat MRSA he is overhauling the way we dress. This is from Reuters:

Under a "bare below the elbow" dress-code unveiled by Health Secretary Alan Johnson, every doctor, nurse and therapist will also be banned from wearing watches, jewellery such as rings and bracelets, and neckties.

Now, on a personal note I like my ties (collection built up thanks to Asian weddings), beautiful cuffs (testimony to my ironing skills), expensive watch (better than yours) and on occassional nippy nights - my white (god like)coat...But joking aside, how is this going to impact on those of us who wear Karas?

The dress culture change will be ordered by draft documentation or via the DoH instructing StHAs in January 2008. There is no way my Kara presents a health risk - it is steel and can be washed, it can be pulled midway up my forearm, out of the way and thus not come into contact with a patient during examination - and so what if it does touch someone - as some would say it divinely blesses them (I think I'm still joking on that point!).

I shall address this to the Rt Hon Alan Johnson MP via letter to outline my concern that this is an article of faith, which is inseperable from a baptised Sikh and is worn by most non baptised Sikhs and should be protected as such, under any dress code legislation. If my fellows feel likewise then I reccommend they do the same by contacting him.

[malkeet]

no freakin way man! we all need to protest and put a stop to this! im not going to stop wearing my kara at hospitals!

[Shaheed_Fauja]

We'll show em that as well as thoroughly washing our hands we also wash our Sarabloh Karas the same way :lol:

[Wicked Warrior]

Yeah I was thinking about this.

I'm not Amritdhari but to me, my kara is as important as my arm. Taking it off I feel nanga though I do do it for theatres and for patients in side rooms with communicable diseases.

Was really thinking about how it would impact on me. I'm not sure what to do.

I have head of some Sikhs who scrub up in theatre keeping the kara under their turban for the duration of the operation but that's only for a few hours. This would be all the time.

The other thing I have thought about is wearing a big enough kara that it can go past the elbow and stay there, where it avoids the 'below the elbow' rule.

Will have to think about this.

[kaur_khalistani_lioness]

The other thing I have thought about is wearing a big enough kara that it can go past the elbow and stay there, where it avoids the 'below the elbow' rule.

thats a good idea=)

[Shaheed_Fauja]

I just had a thought - the Muslims might be in a bit of a trouble because of this (The ones that wear the full covering dress)

But i'm guessing to do seva and to prevent harm to others (rule 1 of being a doc) we can do ardaas after taking kara off - when needed - for forgiveness..

Guru Ji will understand..

[orono]

Goin along with the seva thing, woudl it not be possible to have a kara in dastar at all times, and then whenever you need to take it off yoru arm you can. Obviously most importantly for overall clarification on this, the Panj Piyare need to be consulted, what they say goes