SC awards Rs 11 crore as compensation in 15-year-old medical negligence case
The Supreme Court's decision to award around Rs 11 crore as compensation to the plaintiff of the 15-year-old Anuradha Saha medical negligence case is welcome. The judgment and the compensation amount - the highest in India - highlight the problem of increasing medical malpractice in the country and should serve as a deterrent in similar cases. There's no denying that India's healthcare sector is in poor shape. While public hospitals and clinics suffer from a woeful lack of infrastructure, private service providers have been accused of profiteering and other exploitative practices. A weak regulatory regime has led to the rise of an unholy nexus between doctors, hospitals and diagnostic services. Hence, patients are left at the mercy of a venal system with few alternatives.
In such a scenario, it becomes very difficult for victims and their kin to prove cases of medical negligence. Given the technical nature of the medical profession, negligent acts of omission or commission need to be verified by fellow doctors who hardly ever support the patient. Besides, victims fear that reporting cases of malpractice will deny them treatment in future. Thus, in this skewed doctor-patient relationship it's the duty of the system to protect the latter. Enhanced monetary compensation for proven cases of medical negligence is a useful way of balancing out the power equation between health service providers and ordinary citizens.
The argument that this will make doctors extremely cautious and increase treatment costs for patients doesn't cut ice. While there's a strong case for increasing health insurance products and services throughout the country, the cost of medical negligence for victims and their families is far greater. Low-cost healthcare cannot be a substitute for quality healthcare. The Anuradha Saha judgment puts the onus of safety, proper diagnosis and treatment on the doctor - as it should be - rather than the patient.
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