Practice of Medicine is an Art

I have been going through pages after pages to be inspired enough to write this blog. Also because I feel myself very close to the said subject. My family has given birth to new generation doctors who would be rightful names in the field of medicine. Let them corner all glory and fame. Let them be much sought after. Let them be considered as the best among medical practitioners. However I would like them to remember  a big rider. Let them practice their trade with a smile on their faces and a huge heart .

Today Medical colleges churn out students in thousands all of them well ground, stretched to their limits by the rigorous study and skill required to be practiced. I was in a conversation with my niece the other day, a newly inducted doctor by study. aspires to do her higher studies in the form of specialized study in her chosen field. Believe me its never easy to choose to be in this profession. Needs sincerity, patience and hard work. Now there would be tens of thousands who would want to specialize after the basic MBBS degree. Parents who have burnt a hugs hole in their pockets just to see a bright future for their children. Institutions that teach them the noble profession all prepare them to cure diseases in a manner.

So far so good, but then the corporate world beckons, huge industries, sophisticated medical equipment, infrastructure costs, buildings, salaries, other operating expenditures build up the pressure on the institutions to veer towards profits. Doctors walk into such institutions, knowledge on one side, humanities on the other, which would they choose from? In such a scenario in walks the patient with the fond hope that he would be treated for the disease that he is suffering from. Doctors clearly have the necessary skills to treat the patient but the pressure to get to the monetary numbers outweighs everything else. Result: Multiple tests, endless list of laboratories to visit, a long list of medicines to be purchased only from that particular hospital. The list is endless.

There was a time when a patient could be diagnosed by feeling his pulse. Medicines would be prescribed, and thats it. I can site my own personal experience. My father was suffering from a severe bout of cough and cold. So we had to take him to a reputed Hospital in Chennai. Kindly note that the said doctor is a famed gentleman, who must be making quite a fortune. My father was sent to a X Ray lab to have a screening of his chest, a few thousand charged, back to the said doctor. He has one glance of the X Ray report, looks at his colleague and says "Doctor if I were you I would have started treatment for TB. The colleague is not sure so a few more tests in laboratories. Finally TB gets ruled out. More Money gets coughed out.A severe case of cold and cough and finally the right medicines get prescribed. This is just one case and one where we got away it having a connection with the doctor fraternity. My question is what about those without it. It will be nothing short of a Horror movie for the patient and the family members.

I read a article in the Times of India where the author recommends a study of human values along with the prescribed curriculum in the study of Medicine. I would highly recommend it too. Yes a doctor must be taught the science part of medicine. He must be trained in asking the right question. He needs to be skilled at prescribing the right medicine but most importantly he must be taught empathy, to treat his patients with love and affection, Remember that once a patient walks in not only is he sick with the disease but also by mind. Medicine is indeed not only a science but also an art. All is not evil however in the field of medicine. There are exemplary doctors as well. Ones who excel not only in the scientific processes but also are noble by profession. I would like to end this blog by quoting a doctor friend of mine: "Currency between Doctor and Patient is critical. That currency is not the rupee or the dollar.It is trust. Without it there is no deal between the patient and the Doctor.The State cannot legislate trust.Trying will make things worse. In nearly 25 years of practice I have lost patients and money but have rarely lost trust. If you cannot trust your doctor to make decisions that may kill the patient, you should not get treated by him.If you, the doctor, cannot treat your patient without fear of being held guilty without reason in the same situation, you should offer another surgeon or hospital. If forced to treat, team up with another two of your colleagues. We doctors should stop chasing patients or money. Let us chase trust, respect, dignity and honor. And let us be militant about this. Let no one have the right to take away these values from YOU. No one."

Long live the tribe of such noble Doctors.