The profession of medicine was considered an opportunity some years ago to serve and connect with fellow human sufferers when it really mattered. But of late this profession has apparently taken the form of a business. While some consider it so, majority of others still consider it noble, worthy and sacred. On Doctors Day observed on July 1, The Pioneer spoke to people on their views on the same.
In the present environment, a common hue and cry is that medical practitioners have increasingly lost that vital human emotion of empathy for their patients. Once considered noble, the reputation of the medical profession has taken a severe hit due to the indiscretion and the dishonest ways of some of its fraternity members. There are doctors who value over-testing and over-diagnosis aiming to add to their wealth rather than improve the health of their patients.
Medical Council of India recently had started probe against 300 doctors for prescribing drugs of a particular pharmaceutical company when cheaper alternatives manufactured by better-known companies were available. It is learnt that the doctors were, in exchange, given substantial money and gifted cars, flats and tickets for foreign pleasure trips. All the doctors were asked to produce copies of their bank accounts and passports and present themselves with their originals. Such instances keep on surfacing.
Pl Kaul, an engineering consultant for food processing and agro-based industries, for the past 40 years, shared his experience saying, “I have closely experienced and felt that the medical system in India has gone corrupt, unethical and devoid of human sensitivity. The premier government owned medical institutions facilitate only the VVIPs. Common Government hospitals do not have staff and resources and the diagnostic equipment are often defunct and the poor patients in large numbers get driven to the wall.”
Humanity suffers in the hands of big businesses, hospitals and insurers who are bent on squeezing every last rupee from a common man. They just repackage the knowledge and ability of their clinicians, while slapping on changed name with high price tag. “Private hospitals, pathology and radiology labs, insurance companies and private medical practitioners operate in close nexus to desperation and bankruptcy by creating fear in the patient’s mind that death is stalking over him,” adds Kaul. Sharing his personal experience, the engineer added that even in case of common problem of cough and cold, his wife was advised admission in the hospital under the pretext of keeping her under observation to rule out cardiac, hepatic, neurological problems.”
On the other hand, the medical practitioners reason that they reach out to patients over and over again, on weekends, holidays, in the middle of the night, when it is inconvenient. There is no profession worthier than medicine. There is no calling more sacred. Dr VK Agnihotri, a senior Ayurvedic consultant says, “Medical and health services are the constitutional right of every citizen of India. Medical services are provided to suffering humanity by every doctor of any pathy as worship to God. When the people start thinking that the doctors are making money out of these services, it becomes profession in their minds. Otherwise it is a royal opportunity to serve those who are made by God. The one according treatment and the treated both are supposed to consider their role to protect the noble cause.”
Dr Sanjay Shah, former president of Indian Medical Association (IMA) said that medicine has been a profession since ancient times, the problem is that it has been commercialised. With the government unable to provide even basic healthcare and subsidized land to commercial houses and cashless health insurance being provided by companies, marketing of private hospitals has taken place with no alternative except large government hospitals which are overcrowded and understaffed.
Dr Shah insisted saying, “There is still a dedicated lot who have burnt the midnight oil and toiled and struggled for years, leaving opportunity for greener pastures abroad and have joined charitable hospitals or started their own honest practice at reasonable rates. They never advertise or boast that they are seeing poor patients for free or are providing them medicines. The annual budget for a government hospital is now enough to provide basic healthcare facility to everyone. If the government provides it then private setups will not be required. Healthcare contribution should be made compulsory.”
