QUACKS, A BIG CHALLENGE IN MEDICAL CARE IN THE COUNTRY: MR. JUSTICE G.P. MATHUR
The National Human Rights Commission organized a day long meeting of the Health Secretaries of States and Union Territories and other stakeholders in New Delhi on the 29th January, 2010. The meeting was called to discuss the issues of illegal medical practice by quacks, spurious drugs and lack of medical facilities in Tribal areas among others.
Inaugurating the meet, NHRC Acting Chairperson, Mr. Justice G. P. Mathur said that one of the biggest challenges facing quality medical care in the country is that untrained and unqualified people or quacks can practice medicine without impunity even in a city like Delhi. This is happening despite the fact that there are laws for the registration of qualified doctors. He said that only such medical qualifications are recognized in the country, which are included in the Indian Medical Council Act, 1956.
Justice Mathur said that in the absence of recognized medical practitioners, the rural and tribal population areas are dependent upon mostly unqualified doctors. He said that the Right to Health is a fundamental right, and also one of the most important human rights. The State functionaries are duty bound to make utmost efforts to ensure that all possible medical facilities are made available to every person in the country.
Speaking on the occasion, the NHRC Member, Mr. P.C. Sharma said that the Commission has adopted a proactive role on the health front. He said that public health care should be a subject matter of political debate and serious issue of discussion for civil society, which in the present scenario is lacking in the country.
Referring to the spurious
drugs marketing,
Mr. Sharma said that if a person
is found manufacturing spurious drugs, he can be sent behind the bars for a minimum period of 10 years and also asked to pay a penalty of Rs.10 lakh as per the law, but despite this, the business is reportedly running into crores of rupees. He said that the Drug Controller of India, Director General of Health Services and the Health Ministry need to devise emergent methods of enforcements to step out this evil practice.
Mr. Sharma said that it is NHRC's belief that only an exceptional response ensuring mass mobilization of every sector of society can generate comprehensive healthcare in the country, and the Commission would continue to work as a catalyst to engage various agencies in this direction.
Later, while chairing the first session on "Illegal medical practice by fake doctors", Mr. Sharma said that deployment of persons, as doctors, having three and half years of short term training in rural areas would be discriminatory to both the people, who get treatment from such half baked professionals, and the medical students, who take eight to ten years to become a specialist doctor. He said that people in rural areas are as much entitled to get treatment from fully qualified doctors as in the urban areas.
In the second session chaired by NHRC Member, Mr. Justice B.C. Patel on "Health care facilities in tribal areas; problem and gaps" a need was felt to strengthen health care infrastructure in the tribal areas.
While chairing the third session on "Spurious drugs", NHRC Member, Mr. Satyabrata Pal said
that even if this claim is accepted
that the circulation of spurious drugs in the country is not as high as
is being projected, there is no
reason that this does not call for action on the part of the authorities concerned. Several key suggestions were made for improvement in overall healthcare in the country, including the issues of illegal medical practice, spurious drugs and health care facilities in the rural and tribal areas.
The representatives of Health and Family Welfare Ministry, Ministry of Tribal Affairs, Medical Council of India, Delhi Medical Council, members of NHRC's Core Advisory Group on Health and representatives of civil society, NHRC Secretary General, Mr. K.S. Money, Director General (Investigation), Mr. Sunil Krishna, Registrar (Law), Mr. A.K. Garg, Joint Secretary (P&A), Mr. J.P. Meena and other senior officers attended the meeting.
Inaugurating the meet, NHRC Acting Chairperson, Mr. Justice G. P. Mathur said that one of the biggest challenges facing quality medical care in the country is that untrained and unqualified people or quacks can practice medicine without impunity even in a city like Delhi. This is happening despite the fact that there are laws for the registration of qualified doctors. He said that only such medical qualifications are recognized in the country, which are included in the Indian Medical Council Act, 1956.
Justice Mathur said that in the absence of recognized medical practitioners, the rural and tribal population areas are dependent upon mostly unqualified doctors. He said that the Right to Health is a fundamental right, and also one of the most important human rights. The State functionaries are duty bound to make utmost efforts to ensure that all possible medical facilities are made available to every person in the country.
Speaking on the occasion, the NHRC Member, Mr. P.C. Sharma said that the Commission has adopted a proactive role on the health front. He said that public health care should be a subject matter of political debate and serious issue of discussion for civil society, which in the present scenario is lacking in the country.
Referring to the spurious
drugs marketing,
Mr. Sharma said that if a person
is found manufacturing spurious drugs, he can be sent behind the bars for a minimum period of 10 years and also asked to pay a penalty of Rs.10 lakh as per the law, but despite this, the business is reportedly running into crores of rupees. He said that the Drug Controller of India, Director General of Health Services and the Health Ministry need to devise emergent methods of enforcements to step out this evil practice.
Mr. Sharma said that it is NHRC's belief that only an exceptional response ensuring mass mobilization of every sector of society can generate comprehensive healthcare in the country, and the Commission would continue to work as a catalyst to engage various agencies in this direction.
Later, while chairing the first session on "Illegal medical practice by fake doctors", Mr. Sharma said that deployment of persons, as doctors, having three and half years of short term training in rural areas would be discriminatory to both the people, who get treatment from such half baked professionals, and the medical students, who take eight to ten years to become a specialist doctor. He said that people in rural areas are as much entitled to get treatment from fully qualified doctors as in the urban areas.
In the second session chaired by NHRC Member, Mr. Justice B.C. Patel on "Health care facilities in tribal areas; problem and gaps" a need was felt to strengthen health care infrastructure in the tribal areas.
While chairing the third session on "Spurious drugs", NHRC Member, Mr. Satyabrata Pal said
that even if this claim is accepted
that the circulation of spurious drugs in the country is not as high as
is being projected, there is no
reason that this does not call for action on the part of the authorities concerned. Several key suggestions were made for improvement in overall healthcare in the country, including the issues of illegal medical practice, spurious drugs and health care facilities in the rural and tribal areas.
The representatives of Health and Family Welfare Ministry, Ministry of Tribal Affairs, Medical Council of India, Delhi Medical Council, members of NHRC's Core Advisory Group on Health and representatives of civil society, NHRC Secretary General, Mr. K.S. Money, Director General (Investigation), Mr. Sunil Krishna, Registrar (Law), Mr. A.K. Garg, Joint Secretary (P&A), Mr. J.P. Meena and other senior officers attended the meeting.