One tragic incident of national shame is suicide by a leading, competent gynecologist of Rajasthan state in India recently. She was a brilliant medical postgraduate and gold medalist from Rajendra institute of medical sciences Ranchi. This was not just a suicide or a matter of abetment to suicide rather it was equivalent to a cold blooded murder of an eminent intellectual and professional. Nation should ponder the reasons and circumstances which led to this heinous crime. Police register the FIR under section 302 against doctors under the pressure of politicians and local goons in the name of law and order situations in so called cases of medical negligence where the cases are merely known complications of medical procedures. Police officials under pressure of local politicians even ignore the instructions of Hon'ble Supreme court of India, which state that no case should be registered against medical professional until the medical negligence is confirmed by board of doctors headed by chief medical officer of District.
Otherwise also the incidents of assault on doctors and their hospitals are quite common. Almost everywhere there are gangs of local goons who instigate the attendants of patient, if he unfortunately has complications post medical procedure and these events take drastic turn if the patient dies. Faced with highhandedness of public, repeated humiliation in hands of so called reformers of society, bogus law suits & onerous Government regulations many doctors are simply quitting their profession or giving up part of their practices. Moreover they are opting alternate profession for their children.
Life & death are in hands of God. Doctors can only provide medical care to the best of their ability. Every death in the hospital or a nursing home is not an act of culpable negligence. In various kinds of medical or surgical interventions, the likelihood of an accident or misfortune leading to death cannot be ruled out.
Many times despite best efforts & proper care deaths still occur. Nowadays it has become a fashion for some misguided people, who are not even related to victim, to attack and assault doctors, hospital staff & destroy property after every mishap or death. As a result the medical professional has started doing defensive practice. They avoid attending serious patients where minutes matters to save patients life.
In Government sector, the rise in cases of assault on doctors & ransacking of hospitals by relatives of victims is because of poor infrastructure & manpower in health institutions. Big promises of improving health care facilities are made, but in reality, the present infrastructure & manpower is much poor. The cases against doctors under the consumer protection act are also on rise because of unhealthy attitude of authorities towards health sector. Wild promises of providing facilities matching the best health centers in world are made for hospital that doesn't have even the most basic equipment.
Other cause of assault is increasing general unrest & intolerance of society. Strange are the ways how people in general and as a mob behave without thinking the righteousness of doctors actions. In recent years people have become much less willing to bear responsibility for themselves and to accept the misfortunes of life. Even when the injuries that befall them are no one's fault, many seek someone to blame, assault & sue. Doctors are frequently targeted in such instances because their reputation prompts people to demand from them God like perfection.
People at large should think that if they keep on taking law into their hands & start beating doctors, a day will come when most of doctors will stop taking any kind of risk while giving treatment & thus will deprive many patients of life saving surgeries & medical treatment. Moreover cost of treatment will also shoot up skyrocketing.
Similarly, the doctor community definitely need to introspect for the changing mentalities of people towards them. It is the time for doctors to call attention to the problem and to take the moral high ground when they do so. They toil for years to acquire the skill necessary to save lives, cure diseases & alleviate pain & sufferings. Their challenging work demands they must work with zeal, honesty & ethics to stand apart from other professionals.