The case of medicine and treatment, especially related to wrong treatment and diagnosis has developed in India over a period of time. The Supreme Court ruled at one point of time that a doctor should not be punished for a mistake, but the courts are slowly putting medicine under the ambit of consumer rights, and including wrong diagnosis and slipshod treatment as items for which the injured partner can be provided relief.
In the latest judgment, a New Delhi consumer court has held that AIIMS, the premier Government hospital erred in the case of a lady who was diagnosed with cancer and had removed her breast as part of the treatment. Subsequent tests proved that the lady did not have cancer, and accordingly, the consumer court held that AIIMS was guilty of negligence, and awarded compensation of Rs. 5 lakhs to the lady. In this case, the actual removal of the breast after the wrong diagnosis was held to have aggravated the injury due to the impact on the woman’s married life. Read more about this case here:

“Not only was the diagnosis wrong, the examination of the complainant was not proper. It is not a case of an error of judgment. It is a case of either negligence or incompetence of AIIMS doctors, as a result of which she underwent surgery and radio therapy,” said State Consumer Commission president Justice J D Kapoor, holding the premier medical institute guilty of carelessness.
“Giving concession to the pitfalls in the procedure of detecting cancer (through the technique adopted by doctors) … we find that the negligence of AIIMS was limited to the extent of wrong diagnosis that resulted in very serious consequences that the right breast and arm pit of the complainant were removed,” said Justice Kapoor and Commission member Mahesh Chandra. “We deem that a compensation of Rs 5 lakh for the mental agony, trauma, emotional suffering and disfigurement of her body causing immense life-long loss of conjugal bliss, shall meet the ends of justice,” said Justice Kapoor.

Given the extent of commercialization of medicine and health care in our country, with health care treatment hospitals now being listed on the stock market and with a focus towards getting more profits, the need to have the health care system also subject to consumer rights is very important. As an example, people admitted to various hospitals that charge an arm and leg for rooms and medical treatment always complain about some tests being unnecessary, maybe this practise will also come under the scanner of consumer courts at a point of time.