Although my current schedule is significantly lighter from last year’s, more free time, I’ve come to discover, does not necessarily translate to more writing. I am currently trying to fight a bad case of writer’s block. There are, I think, several reasons for this lack of output. First is that I’ve been spending more time fighting comment spam, clearing my posts of questionable entries and tweaking my installation of MT Blacklist. Second is that I wanted to post about the Medical Malpractice Bill, but can’t think of anything new to say.

It’s been nearly three weeks since my last entry, so today I decided to just sit in front of my computer, clear my head and hack away at the keyboard. Just write something. Anything. Write now, apologize later.

The subject of this post is Sassy’s entry entitled “Do we need a medical malpractice law?” Aware that my take on the subject would be biased, I asked Sassy to take the first crack at commenting on the new Medical Malpractice Bill. Being a lawyer, I knew she would see the issue differently. I sorely needed her point-of-view. As expected, her opinion on the matter did not sit well with some readers (read through the comments). At first, I thought that I would be getting just what I wanted: an intelligent discussion about an important medical issue. It started off great, but the dialogue quickly turned into cacophony — with both sides seemingly content at one-upmanship, concerning themselves with meeting each quick barb with an acerbic tirade. I intend to write an essay about my opinions on the matter, but honestly, I have yet to make up my mind. I am not as certain — as sure of myself — as the bloggers who participated in that short-lived debate.

Let me just comment on the post. The arguments posted are sometimes unrelated, so pardon me if my commentary is a bit disjointed.

I agree that the profession should be regulated. I agree that a surgeons who make gross mistakes such as cutting off a healthy leg should receive more than a slap on the arm. So I guess I should welcome the idea of a law that will allow stricter punishments for erring quacks. Being only a resident however, I myself am not confident to say that I will not make any mistakes. I am afraid of how strict the law can become, and how dangerous it can get for young, inexperienced doctors, especially with hack journalists (like Korina Sanchez) waiting in the wings.

A commenter touched on the subject of compensation:

How much do we pay our hairstylist, let’s say if we go to David’s (Jun Encarnacion is more expensive) — 4 years ago, I was paying P100 plus. Compare this to the PF (professional fee of a community doctor (or someone practicing in the province) who can charge only from P50 to less than a P100. Thing is, we consumers don’t mind spending a lot on luxuries (ok, other basic necessities!) but when the doctor charges a certain amount — we tag that doctor as “mukhang pera.”

Although the comment is indeed off-topic, the Filipino patient’s unwilingness to pay for medical services is a common complaint of many practicioners. I still work for free — that is, I don’t charge patients fees because I receive a monthly salary from the government — so I don’t have to worry about this much. Do I work for financial compensation or do I work for the sake of serving the public? I am a doctor for both reasons. It is my livelihood. It is also my calling.

Sassy asks this question:

…why should [doctors] balk at the idea of protecting the very same public they purport to serve by providing a means to ensure that they will be indemnified in case of any untoward incident, intentional or not?”

I think it’s because untoward incidents are fairly common in hospitals. Patients can suddenly crash even if doctors do everything right. Can we be punished for events not brought about by our actions? Is it automatically our fault if a treatment doesn’t work, or a patient develops an adverse reaction to a drug? What about contributory negligence? Are we willing as a society to crucify all errant physicians — even those who made honest mistakes — just so we can nail every quack in the country?

The relationship between doctors and pharmaceutical companies can be the subject of a lengthy essay, so I’ll hold off for now.

To sum it all up: I do want the Filipino patient to be protected. Quacks should be punished. But even good doctors are not infallible. They make mistakes too. I am afraid that the Malpractice Law will fall too harshly on the medical community. Is it really the solution or will it cause more problems?

As I already told you, I am not at all certain.

Popularity: 7% [?]

• BROWSE / IN TIMELINE
• « Medlinks for 2005-01-06
• » Medlinks for 2005-01-23

• BROWSE / IN Medicine
• « Is There A Doctor In The House?
• » Medbloggers’ Code

• RELATED / YOU MIGHT FIND THESE INTERESTING
No related posts