DOCTORS' DILEMMA

Putting an end to the private practice of Medical college teachers is a progressive and bold decision taken by the health minister which will do a lot in helping the people in getting better service of these doctors. Poor people are the most beneficial as the rich can afford the expensive private hospitals. Teaching and OP are presently done by these doctors as a ritual as their mind is always busy calculating the patients waiting in their private consulting rooms. Some of them even conducting surgery at private hospitals during duty time in Medical college. Now the things will change and the medical college students also can expect better classes.

Stopping of private practice will not affect the private patients as there are enough retired doctors in the field.

With the pay hike the doctors are getting handsome pay packets but they do not seem to be happy. It is quite natural as Government cannot compensate the huge earnings they made from private practice. Other than the salary the doctors have a social commitment as their study was part financed by the people. So they should stop grumbling and dedicate their time to attend the poor patients coming to the medical college hospitals. Most of their private patients are the OP patients of the hospitals who do it as a short cut to enter hospital or the in patients who do this for getting prompt and better treatment there.

First the doctors should realize the REALITY that they are getting a large clientele of private patients only because of their label as doctor in the medical college and the reputation they build throughout their career in Government service. So none of them will dare to resign and start private practice. So the Health Minister can very well proceed. Only thing the minster has to take care is to arrange all the ancillary facilities such as scan etc. and ensuring its uninterrupted and smooth functioning in the hospitals to optimum utilize the extended service of these doctors.

Law may not be forbidding doctors from taking money but the doctors must see that the patients are so poor and coming to their private practice only because they are not getting treatment from the same doctors at the hospitals. Doctors, you are the saviors of the poor patients. “So do not fix your attention on what your fee is to be. A worry of this nature is likely to harm the patient, particularly if the disease be an acute one. Hold fast to reputation rather than profit”.

Sr. ABHAYA MURDER

The visuals of the narco-analysis in the TVs show all the three accused admitting to have committed the murder of Sr. Abhaya. Their statement reveals that one of them opened door for the other two to enter the convent and Sr. Abhaya has seen two of the accused in a comprosing position and so they hit her on the head and thrown her in the well.

Let us go back little. The Indian Express has brought out a news that the test results have been manipulated and corrected at the Public Health Laboratory Trivandrum. The test was smear test and vaginal swab testof Sr. Abhaya to ascertain any sexual assault. The news created a commotion and paved the way for re-emergence of the forgotten murder case.

What was the relevance of the test at the Public Health Lab? What was its bearing on the case? If the result was positive it meant that something happened before she was put in the well. Any mention about any such act was not in the Narco CDs shown in the TVs? There was allegation that the CDs were doctored. The legal adviser of the Church was also strongly arguing in the TV that the CDs have been manipulated. Whether the act for which tests were conducted was the part missing?