Todays train of thought is on a very serious note and maybe
controversial too. There has been a spate of incidents where some relative of a
suffering patient couldn’t take it anymore and took things in their hands.
Doctors have been beaten up and as a sign of protest the entire union of
doctors has gone on a strike. Or the recent case of Eman from Saifee Hospital. I
have been debating this course of action from the angles of a doctor and a
patient for quite some time in my head and think that there are some
revelations to the entire scenario. Something deeper than just a doctor beaten
up or a patients loss.
Let me clarify firstly, that I don’t condone what has been
happening. Beating anyone, be it a sweeper in some run-down office or a doctor
or a lawyer or an engineer or an absolute corrupt politician is not
permissible. We, as a society, cannot support this kind of behaviour.
Is the loss of life or death in a medically critical
condition an uncommon event? No, it isn’t. There is a 50-50 percent chance
anyone of us could die the next moment and in some cases the odds aren’t even
this good, without being medically critical. So, what ticks off patients.
When someone close to us is at stake, the emotions run
higher, stronger. Add to it the fact that patients or public in general in
India feel fleeced from all angles, right from a common man to the top
politician. That frustration is building up. However, when that loss is only
monetary it is slightly easier to bear. When the loss is both monetary and
personal it becomes difficult. There is a whole nexus in India between Doctors,
Pathology labs, Hospitals, Pharma companies and the subsidiaries. I have known
only 1 doctor who doesn’t take commission for the tests he gets his patients to
do. So much so that pathology labs charge us less if we give his reference.
Patients are routinely subjected to a battery of expensive and useless tests by
doctors who are not good diagnosticians, given sub- standard care and ignored
despite paying through their noses. I have received threatening calls from
renowned Doctors, because we shifted their patients to other hospitals with
better and cheaper care. There is a renowned Cancer specialist, who charged you
around 2000 bucks for 15 seconds…. Seriously and this was a decade or more ago.
I had gone to him once with my uncle. Despite my uncle’s warnings, I couldn’t resist
and asked him a slightly different question. It took his assistant less than
five seconds to dismiss it, but we were charged a 1000 bucks more for that
visit. Worst part was that the doctor never himself even studied our case.
Bedside manners, patient empathy is all lost in the hustle bustle to cater to an
ever-increasing population and making more money.
All of this aside and if maybe half the doctors are such,
the other half is still good. All of them are still trying their best. At the
end of the day, they will try to save your life. Beating up any professional,
is not really an answer. For ages, we have put Doctors on a pedestal, much
higher than the rest of the society, so much so that if you see a car parked
wrongly, with a Dr symbol on it, you assume it must be an emergency. Maybe it’s
time we humanise them. Be more tolerant to the fact that they too are
error-prone, not Gods. They are trying their best in the given constraints. Some
patients are sick beyond a point of no return before they even reach the
doctors. Others develop complications beyond anyone’s control. Even if it’s due
to the negligence of a doctor, it’s time we start treating them right. Beating
them up is not the answer.
It’s time to bring them down from that heavenly pedestal so
that we don’t always expect miracles and treat them as professionals.
Professionals who are in a public – emotionally charged public - facing role, constantly under pressure, and
now under the added pressure of hospitals run like corporates. Let’s treat our
doctors right. Let’s acknowledge the fact that they too can sometimes make a
mistake but overall, they are trying their best. They too at the end of the day
want to earn good money just like the rest of us. Advantage being, they get to
do a lot of good work while earning it. Let’s not drive our doctors away from
the personal touch they want to give. Let’s treat them right, no matter how
grave our loss.
