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Category: Editorials
April 01, 1997
In the section entitled Vox Populi in this issue we have reproduced seven extracts from news items entitled 'The first Indian porcine xenotransplant'. This episode raises vital issues.
January 01, 1997
Few issues in medical ethics have interested the layperson as much as the topic of euthanasia. Not only do medical journals frequently contain articles on it, but even the general public has access to material on the subject. The Karen Ann Quinlan case introduced the topic to the Western world ab...
October 01, 1996
Market place medical practice, the sacred mantra of the medical profession in India, has caused a baffling situation once again. The Supreme Court has asserted that practising medicine in violation of the law constitutes negligence per se. Cross practice 'where a homeopath or an ayurved use...
April 01, 1996
Medical ethics require doctors to attend to their patients with sincerity, honesty, diligence and care. They do not, by any stretch of imagination, include aiding and abetting the wrongdoer. Of late we are witness to a series of examples wherein medical doctors stoop to fraud to help prominent, p...
July 01, 1996
This situation has become more frequent of late since the consumer courts usually insist that the complainant brings a medical expert's opinion to support the case or else face dismissal of the complaint. This is ostensibly done to reduce the number of frivolous complaints which would otherwise d...
January 01, 1996
Modern medical practice is by its very nature an interventionist one and in principle, all medical interventions need the informed consent of the patient to be ethically correct. The roots for informed consent lie in the principle of autonomy of the patient – which really means respect for the pa...
January 01, 1996
The recent landmark judgement by the Supreme Court, stating that medical services to patients, for which fees are charged, come under the purview of Consumer Protection Act 1986, has put a curtain on the long- drawn-out debate between doctors and consumers on the issue.
October 01, 1995
The death of industrial tycoon, Rajan Pillai, had a ring of irony around it. In his lifetime he never shed a single tear nor used a penny from his millions to improve conditions of our prisons, perhaps in the belief - shared by most members of our rich and secure middle class - that he woul...
July 01, 1995
On January 19, 1995 we learnt that Justices Kuldip Singh and B. L. Hansaria of the Supreme Court of India passed a judgement which forces doctors employed in prisons to participate in execution by hanging and thus violates medical ethics. This judgement was passed on a petition in the public inte...
January 01, 1995
When it comes to health the consumer has no choice. The stress of illness forces her to comply with advice tendered by the doctor. This makes it the prime responsibility of the doctor to ensure that patients get a fair deal.