Category: medical education

Expensive medical college seat:Is it worth it.


 

At a time when students, parents and even doctors are uncertain whether opting for medical college along with the vulnerability and risk associated with   becoming a doctor is worth it or not, some are naive enough to pay millions as fee for medical education and for securing a seat of MBBS. The noble intentions of NEET were to minimize wastage of seats due to multiple admission procedures running concurrently and to do away with the variable criteria for selection used for admissions. But this time there has been unregulated steep increase in fees of private medical colleges. 

(http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/home/education/news/under-new-rules-less-than-50-private-mbbs-seats-filled/articleshow/60200421.cms).

Isn’t it surprising  that a coveted course, with more than a million  students vying for it, ends up with vacant seats especially in private colleges?  The answer is not difficult to guess. There has been a huge increase in fees by private colleges, which along with disillusionment about medical profession has lead to change in mind of candidates.

It is ironical that the medical profession is regulated, but medical business or medical education is not.  Such business of producing doctors based on their paying capacity should be clearly trounced for the benefit of public. Foundations of healthcare should be on touchstone of merit, ethics and character and not based on business deals. Therefore meritorious students, especially from average backgrounds, who opt to become doctors feel cheated when they pay massive fee to buy a seat. It is an insult to the very virtue of merit which should have been the sole criteria for these admissions.

Truth  cannot remain hidden for long.  It is to be realized that getting into medical college is a minuscule component of the process of becoming a good doctor.  Once they opt for this profession, the real tough and prolonged battle begins. Quite a few successful candidates may eventually feel that the money spent and the hard work may not be worth it especially those candidates who may have invested in heavy fees or bought a seat in medical colleges with hefty amount. Some of them, who invested millions for becoming doctors, will be even probably unable to recover their investments. The students with strong financial backgrounds may be more benefited as they can become investors or health managers. But for others, it could be a dream turning into a nightmare.

Those who invest heavily for getting medical education would eventually try  to recover their money after securing a degree. This definitely clouds their judgement in any future decisions that they make as doctor. On the other hand, meritorious students may not be able to get a seat. These will eventually have an impact not only on the quality of doctors but also on their attitude towards this profession.

The government should regulate these fees and also ensure that if a heavy fee is charged, then it should be spent on medical education of students only. It  should not take a form of just any another money minting industry to be used for other purposes.

The foundation of  medical education should not be based on principles of business but should be on pure merit alone. There is a need for uniformity,  proper infrastructure and regulated standards for these heavily priced medical colleges. There is a need to set up quality medical colleges instead of launching lot of inferior institutions every year who just work for minting money rather providing good doctors to the society. Our society needs good doctors, selected on the basis of merit and their medical education has to be cheap and good. If the society continues to accept such below par practices, it has to introspect, whether it actually deserves to get good doctors.

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Suicide by medical student : Global, world wide Rotten system of medical education


A Resident doctor student of Surgery at GMC  Surat allegedly committed suicide last week by jumping from ninth floor. He blamed work pressure and torture in his suicide note. Actions and conversations are generated only after some terrifying incident and finish with making few scapegoats to blame for  one, like five seniors doctors in this case. But the whole system continues to function in same      inhuman way.  This rotten system ignores the deleterious culture of medicine and dangerous working conditions to which junior doctors are subjected.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/surat/5-booked-for-abetting-suicide-of-gmc-doctor/articleshow/59463184.cms

Medical students enter medicine as inspired, intelligent, compassionate humanitarians. Soon they turn into cynical and exhausted humans. How did all these totally amazing and high-functioning people get so disillusioned so fast?

Problem does pertain to doctors all over the world, as evidenced by suicide by Dr Chloe Abbott in Australia in January. Her sister Micaela said she was Eaten Alive by the medical profession.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-4325812/Investigation-medical-profession-suicide-epidemic.html

 

Inhuman duties, neglect, apathy of regulators towards genuine problems, chaotic  system of working have left doctors, specially in residencies vulnerable to mental illness. Sometimes even driving them to suicides  because of  system failures of medical  administration and inaction by Government.

The terrible conditions have engulfed not only junior phase of doctors, but continue for longer period of their lives, for most of doctors. Because medical professionals find themselves  at the wrong end of stick of government, courts, media for brutal expectations. They face public wrath for system failure.  There is an urgent need for change in work culture and regulations, to make conditions safe for doctors. Grueling shifts, inhuman working hours have to end now, if society really wants to be treated by good doctors.

 

Untenable working conditions, long inhuman hours, unrealistic expectations of patients and thereby creating pressure situations, fear of complaints, physical assaults and medical lawsuits have killed profession largely. Bullying and harassment from all possible quarters is unavoidable consequence.

My earlier article “ enslavement of medical profession” highlights the plight of doctors.

  Almost every doctor will have horror stories to tell, about working conditions. For which medical regulators should be ashamed, there is nothing to be proud of.

      

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Happy doctors day:  merely a hollow slogan?


On 1st of July, doctors are usually greeted from multiple quarters. Newspapers, media and some prominent people  congratulate doctors in their speeches or on their social media pages. However, what doctors need are not just verbal wishes but reinforcement of public’s belief in them . It is this renewal of faith in their saviour which will help  doctors in discharging their duties smoothly and in alleviating their problems.

National Doctor’s Day: India, USA

Despite the paucity of the highly trained medical professionals, the identity of medical professionals as a community in society is not getting its due right  because of  misplaced priorities of  certain people. The society tries to impose a stereotype role on them in an effort to control them fully. And as a result of these various controls, regulations and public pressure, doctors experience unrealistic performance pressure on professional front.

     Doctor is the pivot  point between patients, medical industry, government and insurance sector. Huge number of patients, expensive medicines, poor medical infrastructure has produced tremendous resentment against medical system amongst public. But the brunt of this entire angst has to be borne by the doctor or medical professionals alone. Often they are blamed for circumstances beyond their control and punished for system failure. Fear of public wrath and lawsuits is smothering the medical profession.  And increasingly there is a feeling amongst medical professionals that they are getting a raw deal despite doing their very best.

     In such a situation, there should be some introspection by all stakeholders every year, on doctor’s day. The doctor’s day should be more than just greetings and wishes for doctors. Some real resolutions need to be  taken so that their working atmosphere and eventually delivery of medical care is improved and this ultimately will benefit patients only.  I can think of some much needed changes-

1.       Government should take some concrete decision to improve medical  infrastructure and manpower. A better planning needs to be done to spend more for health of people, availability of resources and for improving the working conditions for doctors. Government should ensure that doctors are better protected.

2.       Medical industry should collectively think of protecting doctors or there should be provision for some financialresponsibility of medical lawsuits of all doctors.  Pharmacy industry, medical device industry, insurance industry  and others earn huge profits because doctors need to use their products. Although medical industry makes huge profits still they remain behind the scene.

3.       Police should provide  assured protection to  doctors better against physical violence.

4.       Medical education institutes should resolve to promote the education of best doctors and not indulge in profiteering in education of doctors.

5.       Courts should take an initiative to protect doctors against frivolous lawsuits ( which are often done to prevent paying their bills), revengeful attitude of patients  and harassment?

6.       On doctor’s day, public should resolve that they will not unnecessarily fight or abuse the doctor.

7.       And last but most important is that all medical practioners , be it allopathic, ayurvedic, unani, homoeopathic or others who play a role in maintaining health of patients, affirm that they will do everything to protect dignity and integrity of this profession.

If the above are not practised and followed, then mere sloganeering on doctor’s day  makes no sense . The  effort to improve training and working condition of doctors has to come from the bottom of the heart of all those involve, both giver and taker.  Mere tokenism on a day in a year is of no real purpose. If the present scenario continues, soon a common man will have problem in accessing good medical care which is currently available at nominal cost . One needs to ponder seriously, if we do not save doctors, who will save us? 

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NEET implementation vital and will decide quality of doctors in future


NEET, the common test for MBBS admission all over nation, is perceived as most basic step  towards uniformity of medical education. It is a welcome single most important step to transform the medical education. But its effective implementation is extremely vital for it to be successful and that is possible only if government takes strong measures to implement it in a true spirit. NEET can reform medical education, weed out corruption and in turn can radically transform healthcare. This new system should allow fair play, transparency and should set an example for promotion of merit in other arenas too. But it needs to be seen how NEET is finally implemented. It will be very unfortunate if it is diluted for any reason and merit becomes another casualty in accommodating other priorities, rather than having best doctors. It  is a now or never situation for the country to pick up best brains of country for  training as prospective doctors , decided purely on basis of merit.  By diluting the merit criterion, not only do less deserving people get ahead of deserving ones, but it breaks the faith and enthusiasm of the best and deserving people in the system, thereby generating a negativism in the whole system. Failure to implement NEET effectively and strictly should be interpreted as government’s inability to control vested interests in the system.

Enthusiasm and the zeal is what we need here in medical care. With the shortage of thousands of doctors, and our infant and maternal mortality rates matching sub-Saharan countries, it is not only the number of doctors which matters. The most important factor, I think, will be quality and enthusiasm of the people who are working for the system.

Besides Infant and maternal mortality rates, innumerable diseases like tuberculosis, heart and respiratory, cancer, neurological and mental ailments, accident and trauma etc need work on war footing.  But the medical system has to be built on the touchstone of merit and enthusiasm for a greater impact. Merely creating number of doctors is not the solution. The need of the hour is more but pure meaning on pure merit. If that does not happen sufferers will be poor genuine aspiring doctors and casualty will be medical profession and ultimately health system and its users.

Let merit not be made a casualty of the system. The ball is now in government’s court and they should ensure that NEET is implemented in its true spirit, to fulfil the dream for which it was envisioned and introduced which is to bring medical care in India to its most cherished peak.

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