KOCHI: Members of the Indian Medical Association (IMA) participated in a nationwide protest on June 18 demanding a central law to prevent violence against healthcare workers. With the slogan ‘Save the Saviours’, the doctors urged the government to enhance security features in all medical facilities. Of late, attacks on doctors are being continuously reported from different parts of the country. IMA appealed to state and central governments to recognise doctors who died of Covid after contracting the virus in the line of duty and award solatium to their families.
When a Journalist asked a general audience what describe a good doctor, the answers varied but had common denominators — listener, compassionate, committed, humanitarian, attentive, patient, competent, healing, and ethical.
Physical assaults on doctors are relatively rare in other countries, but unfortunately, quite common in India. If a patient in the emergency room or intensive care unit, in a critical state, succumbs to their illness, the doctor who delivers the bad news is assaulted by the relatives. Recently, in north India and in Kerala when critically sick Covid patients died, the relatives assaulted and threatened the doctors and damaged the hospital. This act is very disheartening and can demoralise the future doctors of our country.
We should understand that medicine is not a smooth road. Anger against doctors or health care professionals is justifiable if family members believe that they have been wronged. But violence is never a solution. Not long ago having a doctor in the family was a source of significant pride and this tradition was passed down to generations. Now, some doctors are actively discouraging their children from a future in medicine, out of fear.
A doctor will be close to 40 when he becomes a specialist or super-specialist. No other profession has such a long incubation period. Surely he or she is entitled to respect – and understanding if there is a medical error. You must understand, that every doctor will do only what is best for the patient.
WHY THE VIOLENCE
Some of the reasons attributed to the violence include misunderstanding between doctors and patients or their families, cost of medical care and a delay in attending to the patient. The finding of a study by the IMA revealed that more than 75 per cent of doctors across the country have faced at least some form of violence. Doctors faced maximum violence when providing emergency services, with as many as 48.8 per cent of such incidents reported from ICU’s or after a patient had undergone surgery, the study said.