New Delhi: Aamir Khan’s effort to highlight malpractices in the medical profession in India through his path-breaking show “Satyamev Jayate” may have upset many doctors, but viewers agree that discreditable practices are widespread and the actor was indeed doing a great service and would “get support from all Indians.”
“My husband is a diabetic and he refuses to visit the doctors for the simple reason that they might ask him to undergo mutliple tests and prescribe medicine which might not be suitable,” said Ajita Bajpai, a worried wife.
Her reaction followed Aamir’s interview, wherein he refused to apologise to the Indian Medical Association (IMA) for exposing the underbelly of the country’s medical system.
“In one experience – a wrong injection was prescribed. A second opinion confirmed our fears. The prescribed injection had side effects and was totally unsuitable to be taken. Needless to say it was expensive as well. Currently I am just worried as to how I can get him to visit a right doctor and have his faith restored with correct treatment,” she added.
Bajpai isn’t the only one.
“I’ve lived in India and travelled there over 13 times over several decades. I’ve spoken to dozens of doctors, visited hospitals, talked to patients and surviving members who lost loved ones under doctors’ care. Your medical industry is frightening,” wrote a reader under the name Dee.
“Surgeons stop in the middle of operations (Chandigarh) to take tea breaks. Doctors examine women without gloves. Surgery patients must rent their own equipment (IV bags, you name it) which is jointly owned by the doctors, and is then reused. Parents are pressed for more money while their child is on the operating table. Many doctors have no clue about hygiene, the proper treatment for diabetes, and give sugar pills for everything.
“Many doctors who got their degree 20, 30 or 40 years ago have never gone back and learned anything new. India has allowed doctors to run wild. What is truly surprising is that it took a talk show, and not an official investigation, to bring this out,” added Dee.
After the fourth episode of the show, where Aamir put the spotlight on medical malfeasance, an umbrella body of 21 medical institutions has asked Aamir to apologise as they feel he has insulted the noble profession. Of course, the star is in no such mood.
“I have not insulted the medical profession at all. I have the highest regard for the medical profession. In fact what is insulting to the medical profession is those doctors who are indulging in unethical practices. They have insulted the medical profession, not me,” said Aamir in an interview.
Several fans and doctors agree.
“Aamir Khan is doing a great duty towards the country by all means. He is doing whatever myself and all Indians wish to do but can’t. However, he will get threats from all the culprits who are doing wrong practices. But he will get support from all the Indians,” wrote Anil Kumar, a viewer from Kochi.
Davare V.R., a general medical practitioner living in Ahmednagar for the past 50 years, says whatever Aamir projected through his show is true.
“There is no reason IMA or any other medical association should blame him. He is doing social work, indirectly exposing the bad elements in the medical profession. And it is equally true that 40 percent of the medical practioners are looting the population.
“Being in this profession, I’ve gathered a lot of experience during the last 50 years. The situation was not of this gravity when I started working in 1961. But it is worsening,” wrote in Davare.
While a viewer named Touqear Khateeb feels Aamir is a “money maker”, Mumbai-based doctor M. Balasubramanian suggests that Aamir should add a disclaimer to his show to avoid such allegations.
“Ours is a democracy; so anybody is free to say anything on any subject or discuss it on TV with nationwide exposure. While Aamir Khan’s intentions are noble and in the interest of our country, he should put a disclaimer that the views reflected in the programme do not necessarily reflect the views of all the people,” said Balasubramanian, CEO, Shushrusha Hospital, Mumbai.
IANS
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In his episode Amir Khan repeatedly stated not all Drs. but who indulged in malpractice or money minded , i.e. providing their services for more money not reasonable one . He put factual position before the public at large & Dr’s association will not get support from public because , general public are the only sufferer not Amir Khan . In my personal opinion , the actual position on ground is more serious then what stated in one hour program due to lack of time . Even the MCI ex-chief & present chief were there who accepted the truth . Amir need not to give any clarification on this count he should not .
THERE WILL BE MILLIONS OF PEOPLE TO VOUCH ABOUT THEM GETTING CHEATED AT THE HANDS OF A GREEDY,NON ETHICAL AND MONEY MINDED DOCTORS. THERE ALSO DOCTORS LIKE DR. VIJAY DIKSHIT OF APOLLO HYDERABAD WHO HAS SAVED THOUSANDS OF PATIENTS AND LIVES 18 HRS IN OPERATION THEATRE. WHAT Aamir WANTS IS OR OUR COUNTRY NEEDS IS THE YOUNG WHO ARE GOING TO BE DOCTORS SHOULD BRING BACK THE NOBILITY OF THIS PROFESSION AND WE BELIEVE AND DO AGREE THAT DOCTORS ARE GOD SENT TO HEAL AND CURE THE NEEDY… I SUBMIT MY HEAD TO THE FEET OF THE DOCTORS LIKE DR. VIJAY DIKSHIT AND SURE THERE ARE LAKHS AND LAKSH OF DOCTORS LIKE HIM IN OUR COUNTRY AND THAT IS WHY INSPITE OF THE MALPRACTICES MILLIONS ARE GETTING TREATED AND CURED…..
I fully agree with Aamir Khan. I also have great regards and respect to medical profession. But the cheats in this professions are like Kashi. They do not have heart.
One of my relative had a heart attack. He was hospitalised in Jaipur. The doctors in front of the patent used all the tricks and threatened of immediate death if operation is not done.
The gentleman was shifted to another hospital and treated normally and is doing fine since last 7 years that too without any operation. The doctors threatening the patent was really very very cheap and horrifying. Any normal person would have succumbed to their threats and deposited the required amount of 5.00 lakhs immediately.
Aamir has stated the obvious. People should support him. Brokers in Indian Medical Council should be denounced . Most of the modern doctors are no better than butchers.
.
Dear Internet Viewers…… mail from Dr Sreedahara
My e-mail to Aamir Khan is noted below:
==========================
Respected Aamir Khan Ji
I watched with shock and despair the Satyamev Jayate program of May 27, 2012. I am responding since you referred to me although you do not know me. I am the Nephrologist that you referred to while conversing with Mr. Rai. Mr. Rai has been making false and fabricated allegations for the past 2 years. While talking to you, in addition to providing you with false information, he also withheld crucial facts.Over the past 2 years, Mr. Rai has been harassing the Transplant surgeon and myself (Nephrologist) and the Hospital by filing multiple and concurrent complaints at various fora whether or not they have any role on his complaints. With his manipulations, he has succeeded to a great extent in bringing to a standstill transplant surgeries at the the Hospital which has caused a great deal of hardship to several patients. In addition, he has also caused immense damage to the noble field of cadaver transplantation in Karnataka State.Once you are aware of the actual facts, I have no doubt that you will express regret for having given platform to a sophisticated lier with immense theatrical and manipulative skills.Here are some facts that shed light on the truth.
1. Mr. Rai never informed you that Mrs. Seema Rai underwent cadaver donor transplantation and was registered for a cadaver transplantation more than one year prior to surgery. The phone call on the night of admission was made because a suitable cadaver donor had been identified by ZCCK (Government body that allocates cadaver organs) and not by the doctors or the Hospital. Cadaver transplantation has to be done emergently, otherwise the organ(s) will decay within hours and become useless. That is why the patient was admitted on Saturday night (1 May 2010). The patient and her family were all informed about risks and benefits of transplantation for more than 2 years (since June 2008). In fact, whenever the patient consulted me she was eager to get kidney transplant so that she could stop the misery of undergoing dialysis. You can ask any dialysis patient, they will inform that they do not want dialysis but prefer transplantation.
2. Mr. Rai, Mrs. Rai and Abha Rai all were again counseled for more than 1 hour on the night of admission about kidney and pancreas transplantation. Subsequently they also discussed with their relative in New York. Then on the night of 1 May itself Mr. Rai personally informed me and other doctors to proceed with kidney + pancreas transplantation. The Informed Consent form was signed on the night of 1 May itself and handed over the ward doctor. These facts have been documented by the nurse as well as the ward resident doctor. The State Medical Council as well as the National Law School of India have investigated the Informed Consent issue and clearly stated that Informed Consent was indeed taken prior to surgery. In fact, if the Informed Consent was not given on the night of 1 May, the cadaver organ would have been allocated to the next patient on the waiting list for cadaver transplantation who was also admitted to another Hospital on the same night for possible transplant surgery. (Whenever a cadaver donor is available, several patients on the waiting list such as Seema Rai are called and advised to get admitted so that the cadaver organ does not get wasted in case one or more patients are found to be unfit or do not want surgery.) If Mrs. Rai and her family had not consented for the surgery on the night of 1 May, then a surgeon from another Hospital would have proceeded to retrieve the cadaver organ on the night of 1 May. The surgeon from our hospital would have gone home. The very fact that our surgeon traveled on the midnight hours of Saturday to the donor Hospital and brought back the cadaver organs by about 5.30 AM on a Sunday morning suggests that the patient and family indeed had agreed for the surgery.
3. Mr. Rai also concealed from you the fact that he had telephoned the Nephrologist several times on the night of 1 May to seek help to arrange for a special medicine (Simulect) that was to be given to the patient in the Operating Theater before the transplant procedure. The Nephrologist had personally called the Pharmaceutical company on Saturday night to help Mr. Rai to procure the medicine. The Nephrologist had given personal surety to the Company since Mr. Rai told him that he did not have cash to purchase the medicine in the middle of the night. In fact, Mr. Rai procured the medicine at about 7.30 AM on 2 May (Sunday) and handed the same to the Operating theater staff. If the patient and Mr. Rai had not consented for the surgery, why would he purchase the medicine and hand it over to the Hospital staff?
3. Mr. Rai never asked the doctors or any other Hospital staff not to proceed with the surgery at any time. He was plainly lying when he made a statement to that effect to you. If in fact, the patient and her family had not consented for the surgery, that would have been Mr. Rai’s first and major complaint when he filed an FIR with the police on 30 May 2010 accusing the doctors of murder. In his initial complaint to the police as well as to the State Medical Council, Mr. Rai never complained that he or the patient had not consented for the surgery. This fabricated allegation is clearly an afterthought on Mr. Rai’s part.
4. The patient did not receive 119 units of blood, i.e., 60 liters of blood. She received 33 units of blood over 4 days which is about 13 liters of blood since she had developed a massive bleeding condition called Disseminated Intravascular Coagulation (DIC). She also received platelets, FFP and other blood products to correct DIC. The doctors never told Mr. Rai and his family that 390 cc of blood would be required. No doctor can predict the exact amount of blood loss in a given patient who undergoes surgery. Besides, the large requirement of blood in this patient was due to the fact she developed a medical complication called DIC which can happen after any major surgery or major trauma. Normally in transplant surgeries, we do not transfuse any blood at all.
5. The transplant surgeon is highly qualified to conduct pancreatic transplantation as well as kidney transplantation. He is trained at well known Hospitals in the United States where he had conducted numerous multi-organ transplantation surgeries. All relevant documents were reviewed by the Health Department before the Hospital was granted registration for multi-organ transplant surgeries in March 2010.
6. Mr. Rai was again lying when he stated that the doctors had switched off their phone on 6 May after the patient’s death. In fact, Mr. Rai spoke to the doctors several times after the patient’s death. This can be easily verified by looking at Mr. Rai’s phone records.
7. The Hospital was registered for multi-organ transplantation. There was a clerical error in the Certificate which was acknowledged by the Health Department. The Health Department have clearly stated in their report that registration for liver includes pancreas as well (since the skill required for transplantation of both these organs is one and the same).
8. Mr. Rai also withheld from you that the Karnataka Medical Council has thoroughly investigated the case and found no evidence of any negligence on the part of the doctors.
9. Mr. Rai also withheld the fact the Hospital bill was not for the surgery alone. Most of the cost was due the use of blood and blood products and other medicines which was necessitated by the development of DIC and infection. If the patient had not developed DIC, the bill for a transplant surgery would have been about Rs. 3.5 lakhs. In fact, there was no additional charge for pancreas at all. Whether the patient received cadaver kidney or cadaver kidney + pancreas, the bill would have been the same. There was absolutely no financial motive in recommending the combined surgery. The surgeon recommended combined surgery because diabetic kidney failure patients do much better with combined cadaver kidney + pancreas surgery than cadaver kidney transplant alone. This has been well established in the medical literature. The surgeon made the recommendation with the best interest of the patient in mind. Even todate Mr. Rai has not produced any scientific evidence or professional opinion to contradict the recommendation of the transplant surgeon. All transplant specialists who have reviewed the case (from AIIMS-New Delhi, PGI-Chandigarh, Chennai, Bangalore, and USA) have unanimously opined that the patient received the best possible treatment and that her death, although very unfortunate, was not due to any negligence on the part of the doctors or the Hospital.
10. Mr. Rai also did not inform you on the Air that he has filed a complaint with the Consumer Forum seeking compensation of Rs. 84,55,933/-. I am sure Mr. Rai has used his theatrical skills to convince you and your team about his false allegations. I am also confident that you will realize the lapse your research team has done once all the facts become apparent. I am enclosing a detailed Medical History as well and other documents that shed light on true facts.After my medical college, I studied and then worked in the United States for nearly 16 years. I came back with a dream to serve my countrymen. However, now after going through the mental trauma caused by a reckless individual who is inadvertently abetted by a corrupt officialdom and a thoughtless media, I am beginning to wonder if I made a mistake in returning to India. Perhaps, I should also go back to the United States like the doctor that you showed in the opening sequence of your program who returned to the UK because of the corrupt system in India.
I invite you and your team to visit the Hospital, meet other patients who have undergone/undergoing dialysis, patients who have had transplant surgery, and meet the Transplant surgeon so that you can clarify all the facts for yourself.Please do not hesitate to contact me if you need any clarifications.
-Dr. R. Sreedhara
Mr. amir khan kindly have the guts to investigate ??????
those who said all the indian doctors are butchers now reply for this answer. this is real man not a show to have tears when you want . simply dont blame everyone just think how .
Aameer Khan should apologise to the medical council only if the medical council gives a written assurance on behalf of all the doctors in India that there will not be such malpractices by any of the doctors in future & the council apologises for such malpractices that may have taken place any time in the past in any part of India. Otherwise the impression of the Medical Profession will remain in the minds of the Indians as expressed in the below mentioned Sanskrit saying……………………………………..
“Yamo Harati Pranaha, Vidyo Harati Pranaha cha Dhanaha. means Yamraja takes only life, but Dr. takes both life and money.
If true, I am really happy that Dr. R. Sreedhara has come out with the facts.
Aamir and team should do more research to prevent such slips (if true) so that the program remains trustworthy in the eyes of the audience.
You are doing a great national service…………. Keep up the outstanding work…………..The nation stands behind you…………….. Satyamev Jayate……………….. Jai Hind
Once I took my relative,a ellipsis victim to a private hospital in a certain commercial town in Tamilnadu. A young girl in plain cloths in the hospital, — you were supposed to presume that she was a nurse produce a white paper to me asked me to sign it in blank.. “This is necessary to begin the treatment’ she demanded. When I refused to sign blank paper and insisted to see the doctor,she said ‘Doctor is busy. You can see him one hour later” When I made huge noise about emergency and demanded to meet the doctor immediately and eventually met the doctor, he simply declared, ” We are unable to treat your patient, you must take him to a speciality hospital in nearby city.” Fullstop. So much for medical ethics. If this can happen to knowledgeable persons like me imagine the village folk’s situation. And they have the temerity to ask Amir to apologise.Hmm, Blood sucking vampires in white coats.
I thik the MCI should have checked the malpractices before opening their mouth. Can they say no malpracticetakes place and can they tell me how many doctors have been punished by them in the past years?
Amir khan has certainly exposed the bad elements in the profession. profession need continous learning and more documentation and patieant has all the right to know what he is treated for.. He need not be a subject to fullfil someones greed.
Yes Amir, you should take the views of both the parties before you broadcast these incidents. If the doctor is correct(which I feel is correct) then such incidents being highlighted, bring a very bad name to such a noble profession. And please do not show the doctor community in bad light just because of a few black sheep
Hi Amir ….
First of all congrts for ur achievements.Doin a gr8 job but plz clear d doubts sum peopl
r havin about u..
Thanx
Amir khan done right thing to refuse apologise indian medical association.the chief secretary of
Indian medical association Mr.rao said that Amir gave false message to the people.
I have so many examples according to this subject. Amir khan is doing a good job. He made people aware of reality. We all with you Amir.
Yes, exposure of malpractices in this noble profession is a requirement of time. The medical profession now has turned into commercial one. Private hospitals big or small are actively playing the game and extent may vary. It is hard fact .