SUPREME COURT REMINDS DOCTORS & HOSPITALS DUTY FOR SERVING POORS-JUDGEMENT TO BE SALUTED

SUPREME COURT REMINDS  DOCTORS & HOSPITALS DUTY FOR SERVING POORS-JUDGEMENT TO BE SALUTED 

     

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In a significant landmark eye opener judgment for all Doctors & hospitals in India,the Supreme Court by a bench of learned Justice Arun Mishra and learned Justice Uday Umesh Lalit has observed that members of the medical profession owe a constitutional duty to treat the have-nots and that they cannot refuse to treat a person who is in dire need of treatment by a particular  medicine or by a particular expert merely on the ground that he is not in a position to afford the fee payable for such an opinion/treatment.

           Learned Judges stated clearly and loudly that Medical profession deals with the life of human beings. There has to be a balancing of human rights with the commercial gains. Members of the medical profession owe a constitutional duty to treat the have-nots. They cannot refuse to treat a person who is in dire need of treatment by a particular medicine or by a particular expert merely on the ground that he is not in a position to afford the fee payable for such an opinion/treatment.The moment it is permitted, the medical profession would become purely a commercial activity, it is not supposed to be so due to its nobleness.

           It would be inhuman to deny a person who is not having sufficient means or no means, the life-saving treatment, simply on the ground that he is not having enough money. Due to financial reasons, if treatment is refused, it would be against the very basic tenets of the medical profession and the concept of charity in whatever form we envisage the same, besides being unconstitutional would be violative of basic human rights.                   Learned Judges observed and put the truth that By and large the hospitals have now become centers of commercial exploitation and instances have come to notice when a dead body is kept as security for clearance of bills of hospitals which is per se illegal and criminal act. In future, whenever such an act is reported to the police, it is supposed to register a case against management of Hospital and all concerned doctors involved in such inhumane act, which destroys the basic principles of human dignity and tantamount to a criminal breach of the trust reposed in the medical profession.

               They specifically remarked that on the making of a doctor, the State spends and invests a huge amount of public money and it is the corresponding obligation to serve the needy and the treatment cannot be refused on the ground of financial inability of the patient to bear it. They further added that Right from wrong reporting, uncalled for investigation inclusive of invasive one, even as to heart and other parts of the body, which are wholly unnecessary, are performed, it is time for soul-searching for such big hospitals in and around Delhi, Gurgaon etc. and other places. They must ponder what they are doing. Is it not a criminal act?

        They warned that  Simply by the fact that action is not taken does not absolve the responsibility. Time has come to fix accountability and to set right the evils which have rotten the system. The learned judges clearly mentioned that the medical profession had never been intended to be an exploitative device to earn money at the cost of patients who require godly approach and helping hand of doctors. Every prescription starts from Rx, not from the amount of bill. Being big commercial international hospitals in and around Delhi, they are not above the ethical standards which they have to maintain at all costs even by extending financial help to the have-nots.

                   Reiterating the truth they stated that The hospitals nowadays have five star facilities. The entire concept has been changed to make commercial gains. They are becoming unaffordable.The charges are phenomenally high, and at times unrealistic to the service provided. The dark side of such hospitals can be illuminated only by sharing obligation towards economically weaker sections of the society. It would be almost inhuman to deny proper treatment to the poor owing to economic condition.

               Upholding the circular, as the learned Judges were listening to a petition filed by Delhi Government to set aside order given by Delhi High court for absolving many big hospitals of  Delhi Government for not paying fine in crores imposed by Delhi government on these hoospitals for  not giving opd and ipd free treatment to poors inspite of getting land on concession and their written committment.The bench observed and ruled for the whole nation that when the government land had been obtained for the charitable purpose of running the hospital, the government is within its right to impose such the government is within its right to impose such an obligation to collect fine if irregularties of not serving the poor is found in these hospitals where land was allotted in subsidised rate.The Learned Judjes redifined the Duty of Doctors and Hospitals clearly and loudly.

       What as a Doctor and owner or working in a government or private Hospital ,you think regarding such judgement ? Are you agreed or have some other opinion,please write your views.