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Apr-Jun2003-11(2)
LETTER FROM BANGALORE
IMA meetings: down in the
dumps
ANANT BHAN
The Indian Medical Association, Academy of Medical
Specialties (Karnataka Chapter) organized a conference on 'Multispecialties:
current scenario' on February 8, 2003. The scientific sessions dealt with trauma
care, imaging technology, etc. At the banquet, along with the orchestra came
four barely clad girls, suggestively gyrating to the music. This encouraged many
doctors to get on to the stage half drunk, try to get close to the dancers and
shove money into their hands. Petty squabbles followed. That their own wives
were present did not deter the doctors.
Corruption in medical examinations: Can
students do anything?
Corruption in examinations ruins the sanctity of
the 'guru-shishya' tradition. When money changes hands during the final MBBS
examinations which test one's clinical skills and will influence the health of
the community-it raises questions about the quality of doctors being trained.
A variety of ingenious means are used. Some prefer
the broker system (professionals employ brokers to collect money from hapless
patients), while others prefer to do the honour themselves. There have
been instances where professors have sent out unofficial notices declaring
the amount of money to be paid for the subject for that year. Even good
students, terrified at the prospect of failing because of not paying up, spend
the days preceding the examinations trying to find out how much and whom to
pay.
The following incident took place some years ago in
a government medical college before the final year examinations. Over the
preceding decade, bribery had become common. As examinations approached, a small
group of students decided to make a difference-by not paying the bribe and by
making an attempt to break the unholy nexus that existed. A few newspaper
reporters were contacted discreetly and the issue was explained to them
along with the need for maintaining confidentiality. A series of news reports on
the corrupt examination system appeared in these papers over the next few days
and activated the college administration. A concerned parent sent a copy of the
reports to the Medical Council of India, which immediately faxed a letter to the
principal urging her to take necessary action. Some faculty members (including
those who were in the business themselves!) and the principal told the students
not to pay up.
Examiners with credible credentials were appointed
under the strict supervision of the university and for the first time in years,
a 'clean' examination was conducted. The results were not affected in any way
and the overall performance of the batch was good. The examination continues to
be free of corruption in that college to this day. Sometimes all it requires for
an unethical practice to be broken is for somebody to stand up and refuse to be
a part of the rotten system.
Another incident portrays the method used by
corrupt teachers to collect money. The third year students of a dental college
who were to give their internal medicine practical examinations were approached
by a broker for the external examiner. The students were asked to get a fixed
amount of money in envelopes to a busy street near a temple. The examiner and
broker waited in a car with the rear window rolled down. The students were asked
to place the envelopes in the back seat of the car before dispersing. This gave
the examiner a chance to identify the students who had paid while apparently
playing safe by not receiving money directly.
The following day the students who had left the
envelopes were passed while most of those who had not were failed. No complaint
was lodged and the examiner made easy money. While it is important that the
authorities should take utmost precautions to prevent corruption in
examinations, it is also for the students not to be sucked into the vortex of
corruption.
Transplant facts
The Karnataka State Authorization Committee has
only rejected four out of over 2000 applications it has received. In Tamil Nadu,
a Frontline exposé in July 2002 revealed that the Authorization Committee had
not kept a record of the applications received and had only rejected one
application among the scores received the previous year. Surprisingly, the Act
mentions that a record need not be kept if the application is accepted but a
detailed record has to be maintained with reasons if the application has been
rejected.
ANANT BHAN
Community Health Cell, # 367, Srinivasa Nilaya,
Jakkasandra 1st Main, Koramangala 1st Block, Bangalore 560034, India.
e-mail:drbhan@sify.com