'HIV patients treated shoddily in hospitals'

[Guest guest]

'HIV patients treated shoddily in hospitals'

The Indian Express March 12, 2002 - Chitrita Ganguly

NEW DELHI, MARCH 11: The percentage of HIV-infected women in India has been

rising alarmingly. Even more startling is a study done by World Health

Organisation which says that most of these infected women are not promiscuous.

It is actually their husbands who have had other relationships and

" unfortunately it is the women who are the receiving partners and who often end

up paying the price, " said Dr Reddy from WHO. Many more such facts came to light

at a workshop for HIV and AIDS organised by the Society for Civic Rights in

corporation with ODA, Japan in India International Centre on Sunday.

Many doctors, lawyers, NGO workers and social activists attended the day-long

brainstorming session and presented their views and recommendations on how to

spread awareness and also how to tackle the problems of neglect of HIV patients.

Doctors also spoke about how technologies must be coupled with social change. As

Dr Reddy said, " We might have condoms today but imagine the social outcry in

rural India if a woman goes to the chemist to pick up a condom? " He said people

think the lesser a girl knows about sex, the more virtuous she is. It is myths

like these which have to be tackled.

Some serious problems came to surface when some doctors who have been working

with HIV patients for years started discussing their experiences. " I know of so

many cases where private hospitals, after taking money for conducting the

initial tests tell the patients to go to some government hospital for treatment

as they do not belong here, " said Dr Reddy. Most present there agreed that there

often is criminal neglect on the part of care providers and hospitals while

treating HIV patients.

Dr. Anand, who has interacted with slum-dwellers recounted his experience, " If I

ask them why they don't go to the hospitals they laugh scornfully and ask me 'do

you have any idea how they treat us? " The doctor also talked about times when

the patient was made to stay in isolation and attendants are warned not to touch

the so-called highly-contaminated mattresses.

A very interesting point was raised during the workshop. Dr Anand felt that a

patient would never consult a doctor in a room with 20 others present. Hence we

should have a separate consultation room for patients with sexually transmitted

diseases (STDs).

To this however, Dr Reddy disagreed. " If we ask them to consult a doctor for

STDs in a room most patients would be too embarrassed to seek treatment, " he

said.

Dr Anand disagreed. He talked about the hundreds of clinics for gupt rog which

thrive in every nook and corner of the city. " These are quacks and yet you will

find an astonishing number of people there. If they don't hesitate going there

for treatment why should they hesitate to come to hospitals? "

Another interesting point which was raised by the lawyers at the workshop was

that of ethics. Confidentiality, said advocate S. Kumar was a very debatable

issue. He recounts of the case where the doctor of an HIV patient who was about

to get married, told the girl's family that he was infected.

" The man filed a case saying the doctor had betrayed his confidentiality. But

the court ruled that in the larger interests of society such a call can be made

by the doctor. "

Of course, he said there have been cases in rural areas where many doctors

haven't kept their patients condition a secret and hence inflicted on them

untold torture. The workshop was presided over by Justice Qureshi from Gujarat

High Court and a resolution was passed in the end seeking the review of training

programmes and improving the quality of professionals dealing with AIDS

patients.

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Dr.Jagdish Harsh ( jharsh@... )

Director of Administration and Operations

François-Xavier Bagnoud (INDIA) ( www.fxb.org )

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