'Doctors should have courage to accept mistakes'

Doctors should not use their organisation’s power to defend unethical practices, opined Dakshina Kannada Superintendent of Police Abhishek Goyal.

The medical professionals are going through tough time and require a lot of sympathy, but at the same time, doctors should not encourage unprincipled activities of their colleagues, he said.

He was addressing the gathering after the inauguration of Association of Medical Consultants (AMC) Mangalore chapter at IMA House on Sunday.“It is appreciable that doctors having a new organisation. However it should not become a platform for doctors to chill out during weekends,” the SP said.

“IMA is acting as if its only duty is to protect its members in cases of medical negligence, giving representations for pressurising the authorities. The IMA lacks credibility and is lacking the courage to stand up and say ‘yes, we made a mistake,” the SP observed.
He said that after the consumer acts were introduced, the number of cases against doctors has increased. But the expert medical panels of the consumer court are helping the doctors to get away from unnecessary cases.

He also said that there are genuine complaints from patients that they were subjected to unnecessary tests.

 “There are hospitals which are not providing  medical reports to the patients on request,” he added.

Association of Medical Consultants President Dr Lalit Kapoor, AMC Mangalore Chapter President Dr Mukund K, Secretary Dr K R Kamath were also present.