JUDGMENT

Though doctors’ aura of Godliness and holiness is a myth, they are volunteers who take the risk of dealing with the most intricate, delicate, and complex machine on earth - the human body. Any surgical procedure or medical intervention on this highly compound machine carries some inherent risk. There is always the chance that the treatment does not go as planned. When things go wrong, it is not always the fault of the doctor. A complication by itself does not constitute negligence. There is a big difference between an adverse or untoward event and negligence. However, there is a growing tendency to accuse the doctor of an adverse or untoward event. Nothing can be more professionally damaging and emotionally draining than being arrayed as an accused in any such action. A surgeon, under fear of facing criminal prosecution in the event of failure for whatever reason – whether due to his fault or not- cannot perform at his best. The Judicial Forums, in the process of fixing parameters of liability in the cases of medical negligence, must aim at striking a careful balance between the autonomy of a doctor to make judgments and the rights of a patient to be dealt with fairly, r