In Pakistan only the media has played a pivotal role in exposing the existence of malpractices by doctors
KARACHI: It is a well-established law in terms of the Constitution of Pakistan 1973 and the Human Rights Act of 1998, that no one, including doctors, enjoys full immunity. Medical negligence is an act or omission by a doctor in which the care provided was deviated from accepted standards of practice and caused injury or death to the patient.
In Pakistan only the media has played a pivotal role in exposing the existence of malpractices by doctors. There are alarming statistics regarding it but majority of them go unreported. One of the major criticisms against doctors and hospitals is that they deliberately chose not to disclose any risks of surgeries to patients for commercial motives. But under the law of negligence, a doctor is under a strict duty to take reasonable care to ensure that a patient is aware of the risks of injury that are inherent in a treatment and such duty could also be understood as a duty of care to avoid exposing a person to a risk of injury, which he/she would otherwise avoided.
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It is a well-established principle of law that doctors cannot simply shift their responsibility on to the administration of the hospital, nor can the hospital lay off its hands by throwing away the responsibility upon the doctors. The hospitals can be vicariously liable for negligence by its staff.
There is a dire need to understand that medical negligence cases must be reported. It is obligatory upon every citizen, particularly the victims of medical negligence and their families, to at least write a complaint to the disciplinary committee of the Pakistan Medical and Dental Council, which is empowered under their regulations 2002 to cancel the licence of the doctors and take legal action against them and the hospitals involved.
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The victims must lodge an FIR under Section 318 and 304-A PPC1860 against the doctors and the administration of hospitals involved in medical negligence cases. In fact, they can also file a civil suit in the court for recovery as compensation and damages under Fatal Accidents Act of 1855.
Published in The Express Tribune, May 3rd, 2017.
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