Guilty till proven innocent?

Remarks Dr Lalit Kapoor, spokesperson for the Association of Medical Consultants (AMC): “Doctors today are more guarded and tend to opt for a lot of tests, which pushes up the cost of treatment. With practically every patient being referred for a CT scan, ultrasonography and magnetic resonance imaging, patients certainly feel the pinch. But while this is essential for an accurate diagnosis, patients still tend to blame the doctor if things go wrong.”

Dr Kapoor points out that a consultant — Dr Jaykar was a consultant with both Lilavati and Jaslok hospitals — does not have to tend to a patient round-the-clock. His/her job is only is to diagnose the illness and then prescribe treatment. It is the junior doctor who actually administers treatment, a facet that is usually misunderstood by the patient, he explains. He elaborates: “In this age of tele-medicine, when consultants in other cities and from across the globe diagnose illness, how can a patientexpect a consultant to hold his/her hand?”

But, yes, he admits, there is a dire need for improved communication and transparency between doctor and patient, and the AMC is determined to be a catalyst, he says. This will be achieved through various fora. For instance, doctors will be encouraged to explain the course of treatment to in detail and communicating more with persons under their care.

Reciprocally, he underscores, patients must be more understanding of their doctors’ responsibilities but should feel free to clarify doubts that may arise.

Dr V H Vihurkar, general practitioner, says patients often feel they are being fleeced and this is contrary to the earlier image of the doctor working without any profit motive. He also decries the recent trend of self-proclaimed `social workers’ provoking patients to lodge complaints against doctors, saying that even the police tend to register cases without combing among the details. His message: “When death occurs despite the doctors’ best efforts, it is not necessarily the surgeon’s mistake.

Dr Anil Suchak, medical director, Suchak Hospital, Malad, feels that the curriculum of medical students should include a chapter on the doctor-patient relationship. “It is true that there was no focus on this aspect till some time ago, which engendered an air of mistrust between the two,” he says. “But this is changing now. Doctors are making an effort to communicate with patients so that the latter are aware of the line of treatment at every stage.”