Not only an MBBS doctor, now even a dentist can issue a death certificate. The Union Health Ministry recently gave a green signal to the long-pending demand of the Dental Council of India (DCI), empowering dental surgeons to issue a death certificate.
DCI Secretary SK Ojha told The Pioneer that so far only an MBBS doctor was authorised to give a death certificate, while dentists could not, even if the patient had died during a dental procedure. Dental surgeons, despite studying medicine, were not “considered” doctors.
Sometimes a tooth injury or an infection can also turn fatal, he explained. The Dental Council of India had been representing the demand of the dental faculty before the Union Health Ministry for long, seeking power for them to issue a death certificate in case a patient dies while under their treatment. “The Government’s move to authorise dental surgeons to issue a death certificate if a patient dies during the procedure has brought them at par with MBBS doctors,” said a senior member of the DCI sub-committee, which recently revised Code of Ethics Regulations 2014.
According to the Section 3.10 of the Regulations, “Dentists can now declare death if a patient dies in their care.” The Gazette notification in this regard has been issued by the Ministry recently.
There are 305 dental colleges across the States and presently there are 93,332 dentists in the country. This is too less when compared to medical doctors. India has 6.5 physicians per 10,000 population while less than 1 dentist (0.8) per 10,000 population. This is a matter of concern given that oral disease burden in India is very high, as per a WHO report.