The Tribune, Chandigarh, India

HEALTH

IMA “should monitor” complaints against docs
Kuldip Bhatia

Ludhiana, June 8
Medical professionals have come under direct attack. Hardly a day passes when media reports do not mention mob ransacking a hospital or a case being filed against a doctor. To make the matters worse, local media keenly focuses the adverse news against the medical community and such regular news reporting not only has a negative effect on the established medical practice but also tends to dampen the spirits of the young medicos.

A prominent local psychiatrist Dr Rajeev Gupta, commenting on the prevailing scenario of increased attacks against medical fraternity commented that some of the problems being faced by the medical profession today went because of the fast commercialisation of the medical sector.

“The state treats hospitals and nursing homes at par with other commercial establishments and levies all kind of taxes and charges like house tax, commercial rates for electricity and water charges which makes the medical treatments more expansive. Moreover, local authorities allow hospitals to come up in the commercial areas only which further jacks up the cost of medical establishments and treatments.”

He felt that in the absence of support from the government agencies and as a result of the heavy taxation and costly maintenance, cost of the medical treatment had gone up and disappointment of the people from the medical services was in direct proportion to the investment they had to make for modern medical care.

Dr M.S. Sethi, a Laparoscopic surgeon, was of the opinion that such kind of reporting badly affected the doctor-patient relationship. Under present circumstances, doctors tended to avoid taking risks and went for defensive medical practice.

“One depends more on the investigations than on the clinical skills, which naturally adds up to cost of the medical treatment.”

He observed that most of the litigations arose because some treatment did not yield desired results which made the patient and his family furious.

Some patients themselves kept on shopping and treated medical profession like a shop in the market. They prefer the doctors offering cheaper treatment. In turn, they received inadequate or bad services. The patients should ought to remember that professionals charged according to their own experience and that treatment by two different doctors with varying qualifications and experience could not be compared in terms of cost, Dr Sethi added.

A child specialists Dr Surinder Likhi remarked that more than 95 per cent patients improved with the medical treatment and only an insignificant number remained dissatisfied or failed to respond to the treatment. He opined that most of the patients expected a free or subsidised treatment and were not willing to pay for the high cost medical treatment. The government was also not putting in enough efforts to help private medical sector to grow and the state-run services were not sufficiently equipped to take care of the health demands of the population. As a result, the entire burden had come on the private sector.

He said a large number of patients came to the doctors at later stage and expected miracles. However, when there were problems or complications, they blamed the doctors. Dr Likhi was of the firm view that unless state agencies provides liberal funds, it was not possible to provide quality medical services at subsidized rates.

“When other private establishments like restaurants, hotels, industries, shops and service industries are not providing free or subsidized service, then why the medical professionals are expected to do so ?” he asked.

Dr N.D. Awasthi, a senior orthopedic surgeon, suggested that bodies like Indian Medical Association (IMA) should be closely involved in complaints against doctors and only after allegations were prima facie established, action for insufficient or negligent services should be initiated against medical professionals. At the same time, media trials of the fraternity, involving complaints from patients, needed to be curbed in an effective manner.

“Most of the times press reports carry one-sided story and since patient is an aggrieved party, he or she puts all the blame on the doctors. Only the decisions given by the expert committees or the courts should come in the press.”

Dr Awasthi maintained that unavoidable complications could not be avoided even in the best of the medical centres in the world. In spite of the best efforts put by the doctors several diseases followed their own course in some of the cases. He strongly asked the media to rather educate public on health matters so that people behaved in a more mature way.

Cardiac camp date extended
Our Correspondent

Ludhiana, June 8
The cardiac camp that has been going on at Hero DMC Heart Institute (HDHI) here to commemorate its 4th anniversary of the institution, has now been extended till June 15, according to Dr G.S. Wander, director of the HDHI.

The cardiac patients are being provided specialized cardiac care facilities like angiography, angioplasty and bypass surgeries at heavily subsidised rates. The concessional services in the camp would be available only till June 15.

Mr Wander further said during the past four years, nearly 1200 cardiac surgeries had been performed at the HDHI with a tremendous success rate. In addition, more than 8000 cath lab procedures had also been performed. With the objective of providing specialised cardiac care to the people on affordable cost, the HDHI had launched the special camp from April 1 which will now conclude on June 15.