Dr. Uma Krishnaswamy’s Medical
ethics column, published in Magazine, Weekly edition 2, The Hindu Chennai edition dated May 25, 2008, Sunday, addresses in detail about ‘lack of ethics in the medical profession. The author, with lot of concern, points out the newspaper reports or TV news items over the ‘sensational crimes committed by doctors: kidney thefts, cyber crimes, immoral trafficking of women, female foeticide...’ In the light of such appalling crimes, ‘medical insurance frauds, the issue of false medical certificates, self-promotional advertisements etc. seem to pale into insignificance.’
‘Gross violations of the medical code of conduct’ is the common events in Indian medical practice. Professional organizations are helpless and they are unable to do anything. The regulatory organisations are hampered by outdated and toothless rules and regulations. What is worrying is the level of
moral decay and degradation has come to stay within the Indian medical profession.
The question appears in our mind is, “What ails our doctors?” Can’t we expect medical professionals to have higher standards than the rest of society? The answers are not encouraging Can we expect the medical professionals to have value systems that are eroded from the moment an individual decides to seek a career in medicine? Competencies or aptitude of a student does not assure a medical college seat. Examinations and entrance tests may assess the student’s ability to be “book smart”, but ignores personality traits and aptitude. Moreover, the availability of seats in both the government and private sector is colored by many other issues like social class and political clout.
The medical seat in a private medical college costs 20 to 40 lakhs. Having entered the medical course, the student faces the dreaded MBBS examination. Again the MBBS examination is in the hands of corrupt examiners who can ensure passing out for many.
The next step most young doctors take are to seek post graduate qualifications. The prices are crippling to say the least. A post graduate seat in Radiology may sell at about 1 crore rupees in the private sector. How does an average Indian family secure this amount? Dowry is an obvious answer for eligible medical bachelors!
After completion of PG, the newly qualified doctor enters the professional arena and encounters merciless competition. The young doctor now discovers that building a private medical or surgical practice based on ethics is too arduous and time consuming.
what does the impatient young man or woman do? To secure instant financial success and recoup the capital invested thus far, there are many options one can resort to. Paying touts to steal patients from another established practitioner, giving “cuts” to referring doctors, taking “cuts” from laboratories, issuing false medical certificates, engaging in insurance
fraud in collusion with patients, engaging in self-promotional advertisements, self-styling oneself as an authority in a given specialty with no professional accreditation, undertaking unnecessary investigations and surgery are all grist to the mill.
Once their professional berths are thus secured, these doctors wield enormous influence, perpetuating the very value systems that have boosted them to the top. How can the public and professional conscience be stirred? How can the righteous members of the medical profession do anything to stem this rot from within? Does one simply wait for a benevolent providence to intervene?
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