Indian Medical Association and UNESCO join hands to express their solidarity on the importance of Bioethics

The healthcare industry in India and across the globe has seen a revolutionary shift over the past decade. Technological advancements have made possible the eradication of epidemics like polio and plague, which used to be the cause of death for millions. Diseases like cancer, which were considered incurable in the past, have now found successful treatments. The life expectancy of the population has gone up, and the quality of life has improved. However, with all of this has also come an increased consumerization of the medical field. The doctor – patient relationship has become extremely impersonal, and there has been a drastic rise in evils such as medical negligence and violence against doctors.

Addressing these new age problems and stressing the importance of a comprehensive bioethics charter, the Indian Medical Association, and UNESCO co-organized a debate at Heart Care Foundation of India’s annual flagship event, the 22nd MTNL Perfect Health Mela today. Dr. Susan Vize, Advisor – UNESCO, Prof Kalra – Vice Chancellor, University of Health Sciences and Patron of the UNESCO Charter, IMA’s National PresidentDr. A Marthanda Pillai && Honorary Secretary General Dr. KK Aggarwal chaired the discussion.

Bioethics is the study of the typically controversial ethical issues emerging from new situations and possibilities brought about by advances in biology and medicine. It is also moral discernment as it relates to medical policy and practice.

In his statement Shri Jagat Prakash Nadda, Union Minister of Health and Family Welfare said, “I congratulate the trinity of IMA, UNESCO, and Vice-Chancellor of healthcare universities in their endeavor to inculcate and propagate ethics in medical services. Every doctor in our country should be educated about the ethics of the profession right from the beginning.”

Addressing the importance of ethics in medicine, Padma Shri Awardee Dr A. Marthanda Pillai – National President IMA and Padma Shri Awardee Dr. K K Aggarwal, Honorary Secretary General IMA and President- HCFI in a joint statement said, “Ethics play an extremely crucial role in defining a positive doctor-patient relationship and ensuring effective health care delivery. There is an urgent need to educate the medical fraternity of what they must and must not do to protect the nobility of the medical profession. In this regard, it is extremely important to formulate a bioethics charter and include medical ethics as a part of the regularMBBS curriculum. In addition to this, ethics must also be taught as a part of CME for established medical practitioners. Being aware of necessary principles of ethics can help doctors make the right decisions on how to act in complicated clinical situations and avoid any subsequent unpleasantness. An open and honest communication between doctors and their patients can help set necessary expectations and ensure proper treatment.”

Adding to this, Dr. Susan Vize, Advisor, UNESCO said, “All medical practitioners must be aware of what is the right thing to do and the good way to be, what obligations do they have towards their patients and what constitutes a case of medical negligence and inappropriateness. By doing so, they are more likely to take the right decisions during high-stress situations and emergencies”.

Addressing the gatheringDr. Princy Louis Palaty – Head, South-India Unit, UNESCO, Chair in Bioethics and National Bioethics Curriculumsaid, “Every practicing doctor must be ethical while delivering healthcare services to the society and not let lucrative and other negative instincts influence his/her decision. Educating the medical fraternity about ethics is the need of the hour, and we hope that through this collaborative joint venture we can steer the country towards ethically excellent healthcare.”

The discussion panelalso constituted Dr Rusell D’souza – Head, Asia-Pacific Division, UNESCO, Dr Mary Mathew – National Chair, TTT programand Head, Karnataka Unit UNESCO and Dr Mohandas – National Chair, Technical Skill Head Kerala Unit. Eight Vice-Chancellors were also present includingProf. Dr. Raja Babu Panwar from Rajasthan University of Health Sciences,Prof. Dr. Raj Bahadur from Baba Farid University of Health Sciences, Prof. Dr. Ravi Kant from King George Medical University, Prof. Dr. MKC Nair from Kerala University of Health and Sciences, University of Health Sciences, Dr. O. P. Kalra from Pandit Bhagwat Dayal Sharma University of Health Sciences, Prof. (Dr.) Bhabatosh Biswas from Madhya Pradesh Medical University andProf. Dr. D. P. Lokwani from West Bengal University of Health and Sciences.

An annual flagship event of the Heart Care Foundation of India, the 22nd MTNL Perfect Health Mela is taking place at the Talkatora Indoor Stadium from Nov 4-8, 2015. To know more about the Perfect Health Mela, please visit www.perfecthealthmela.com