Docs float new forum

The quantum of compensation awarded prompted the FOMA to advise its members to up their insurance cover to indemnify themselves against potential malpractice suits.

8220;Otherwise, both patients and doctors will end up losers and insurance and legal companies will be the beneficiaries,8221; says Dr Arshad Gulam Mohammed, vice-president of the Indian Medical Association Bombay West and FOMA8217;s co-convenor. FOMA was set up at the urging of the Association of Medical Consultants in Mumbai to act as a pressure group to fight medico-legal cases, said Dr Lalit Kapoor, FOMA8217;s co-convenor. The forum will approach the Union government and other related bodies like the Nursing Council of India to tackle medical infrastructural inadequacies.

Dr Kapoor says doctors account for just 30 per cent of healthcare inputs, whereas the rest comes from supporting services like blood banks, paramedical staff like nurses and ambulance services, which comprise the medicalinfrastructure. The lack of qualified nurses is especially dire, says FOMA. At some municipal hospitals in Mumbai, the nurse-patient ratio is an appaling 1:12 in many wards.

While both private enterprise and the government readily open new medical colleges, few are interested in setting up nursing colleges, Dr Kapoor says. 8220;And for those who are, permission is not easily forthcoming from the government. We do not need more doctors. The doctor-nurse ratio in India is already 3:1 while it should be exactly the reverse,8221; Dr Kapoor adds.

Government studies indicate that the required nurse strength in India is 9 lakh, while there are only 2.5 lakh registered nurses at present. 8220;The Supreme Court judgement only highlighted the deficiencies in the health care system. But what we require is to improve supporting paramedical services, especially augmenting the number of trained nurses registered with the nursing councils of various states and increasing the number of authorised blood banks,8221; Dr Mohammedasserts.

In Mumbai alone, there are at least half a dozen private nursing colleges not recognised by the Nursing Council of India. Therefore, these are not considered qualified nurses, Dr Kapoor points out.

Doctors are becoming increasingly perturbed with the pressure to become accountable to more than one beneficiary of their service mounting. However, bringing doctors under the Consumer Protection Act is definitely not the answer. Patients and doctors will end up as losers while insurance and legal firms will benefit, Dr Kapoor says. However, the vast amounts awarded as compensation by the courts has doctors very worried. If clients demand standard services and greater accountability, they will have to pay for them, doctors say, though FOMA did not discuss raising fees.

With the medical profession being brought under the CPA8217;s purview in November 1996, India is likely to face the same turmoil that the US underwent almost 35 years ago, where the profession is highly litigious, doctors here fear.Doctors in India fought a four-year losing battle to exclude themselves from the act8217;s purview.