A LAMENT FOR COMPASSIONATE CARE

India boasts one of the world's oldest and largest healthcare systems, including Ayurveda and homeopathy, with allopathic treatment, catering to a population exceeding 1.4 billion people.

- DR SHALINI YADAV

However, beneath the surface of this vast network lies a troubling reality: an increasing tendency to view patients primarily as clients whose financial resources can be exploited. This scenario raises concerns about not just the ethics of healthcare delivery but also about the efficacy and quality of medical services available to the general populace.

In the contemporary Indian healthcare backdrop, hospitals often operate with a business-first mentality. The objective is not merely to treat patients but to maximize profits through various mechanisms, often at the expense of patient welfare. This profit-centric approach manifests in several ways, including excessive formalities and hidden charges, over-prescription of tests and medications, frequent changes in medical staff, irregular availability of doctors, and the incentive structure of doctors and its impact on patients' treatment.

Recently, I had a shattering encounter that forced me to share my highly painful and disturbing experience within the health sector of our country. My young child was suffering from a high fever, and I had to take him to the hospital for proper medication and treatment; and all the chaos started. My son's feverish body, always used to get comfort from the reassuring presence of two seasoned pediatricians, was now lying vulnerable in unfamiliar hands. The hospital management changed the whole staff.

For years, those gentle, caring, compassionate, and well-practiced doctors had been the inspirations and rays of hope; their warm smiles dismissing half of my son's illnesses as soon as he used to step into their cabins. However, the hospital's management policies and conflicts also drove these guardians of health away, taking with them a team of dedicated staff.