Letter to the Editor: Resident duty hours: Globally accepted standards and the situation in Pakistan

Madam, resident duty hours have been a widely debated topic over the years with conflicting views. Though, recently the trend has been to restrict work hours over the week so that adverse effects of working overtime are minimized. Data from studies conducted in different countries have shown that over working leads to deterioration of performance and may be harmful to both the patient and the caregiver. In light of these studies, many medical bodies in the developed world have put on a cap on the number of hours a resident is allowed to work in a given week.