CONSUMER PROTECTION AND MEDICAL NEGLIGENCE IN INDIA: BOON OR BANE
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Abstract
Medical Negligence is a growing area of concern in India and this research paper shall deal with the medical malpractices, negligence and ethics in India. A critical analysis shall be done to find out the reasons behind the increasing number of medical negligence cases after the establishment of the Consumer Protection Act. Ever since the relationship between doctors and patients had been established as a contract for personal service and not contract of personal service according to the Consumer Protection Act, 1986, in the Indian Supreme Court judgement of Indian Medical Association V. VP Shantha, doctors have been found negligent in most cases appealed by patients. The steady growth of medical negligence cases over the years has led to a rise of questions such as- Are the doctors ignoring medical ethics? Are the doctors devaluing patients’ well-being? But, there can also be questions from other perspectives such as- Are doctors afraid to come to a probable diagnosis because of the growing knowledge of the patients’ ability to find out the risks involved in procedures due to the concept of informed consent? Is that a reason for the doctors to take less effective but safer treatment methods, as they do not want to be the reason for the hospital to get sued? Doctors are considered to be next to God in this country. The objective of this research is to find out if the growth of medical negligence in India, is a boon or a bane; to look at perspectives from both the patients’ (consumers) and doctors’ (service providers). The elements of negligence, defense to negligence, duty of care, degree of care, standard of care, the history of medical negligence, the inclusion of medical negligence in the Consumer Protection Act, the difference between civil and criminal negligence in the medical field, the growth of medical negligence, landmark judgements of the Supreme Court defending the patients and landmark judgements of the Supreme Court defending doctors shall be discussed in this article.
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